Storybrooke Ending
by Many Impossible Things
Summary: With a ten-year-old and a white wolf to guide her, Emma decides to make sure the queen has destroyed her last two hearts. My ending to Ep. 7 and beyond...
1. Not So Lonely Heart

So, I sat down tonight to work on a different story of mine and, five hours later, this decided it was done. I couldn't let "Heart is a Lonely Hunter" end like it did without a fight. So, I know it's probably at the very least a tad out of character, but I needed to fix things. Thanks for reading and hope you enjoy.

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><p>Not for the first time since she'd decided to stay in the town of Storybrooke, Emma wished with all her heart that everything she remembered was a dream. Just let everything from the previous day be a dream. <em>Everything<em>. Nothing she remembered actually happened. She hadn't broken into a mausoleum. She hadn't kissed Graham. He hadn't kissed her back. He hadn't looked at her like she was the answer to all of his questions. She hadn't broken her personal vow and let him in, because that look had effortlessly shattered every wall she had. She hadn't managed to fall in love with him so quickly and inexplicably.

Most importantly, Graham hadn't died.

No, she had gotten a full night's rest. She had not really gotten to bed at five in the morning after sitting through a horrendous night at the hospital full of doctors telling her he was very dead, "Mayor" Regina trying her very best to convince the doctors it was Emma's fault, and all the while trying to stem the deluge of tears that for once demanded to be let free.

Where was one of Henry's fairy tale wishing stars now? She'd go out and become a hermit so she could spend her life solely wishing for Graham to be not dead if that's what it took.

Henry had been the one to save her. Ignoring the pure rage upon the mayor's face, he'd grasped his mom's had and led her back to Mary Margaret's, not saying a word as she broke down into breath-stealing sobs as soon as the cool night air hit them. After he'd rang the doorbell, he turned to her, "We'll fix it, mom. Operation Cobra will find a way to fix it, I promise."

She'd tried but had been unable to crack a smile at him. Kneeling down, sniffing away some unattractive snot running out of her nose, she said sincerely, "I believe you, kid. I promise I will never doubt you again on this." Maybe it was her distraught state, but she just knew that Regina had something to do with it. She couldn't explain why, but between the wolf and Regina and…and the way that Graham had said that he remembered. She believed Henry.

Mary Margaret opened the door, immediately gasping. Henry squeezed Emma's hand and led her toward Mary Margaret's couch. Henry nodded, unflustered as he did so, "I know. You never have. You just didn't realize it. You made him remember, you know. When the sheriff came to see me, he said that he'd started seeing all the stuff from his other life after he kissed you. You were helping him get his heart back. You were breaking his curse."

Hiccupping, she shook her head, "He got his heart back himself. He's the one that dumped Regin…" She cut off suddenly, realizing she'd just told the ten-year-old about the secret relationship.

However, Henry didn't seem too perturbed like a normal kid would be. His eyes widened and mouth formed into an O. After a few seconds, he began nodding, "That's why. She killed him. She killed him! She destroyed his heart! Mom, mom, mom! That's what the Evil Queen does. She takes the hearts of the people she hates and keeps them in boxes. Then they can never feel or leave her. She can keep them forever without having to be afraid of them running away or hating her. It all makes sense. She must have destroyed the huntsman's heart when he picked you!"

Emma unsuccessfully fought back a sob.

Mary Margaret cut in for the first time. Smiling, she said softly, "Henry, why don't you head home? I think Emma needs to sleep. You can come back first thing tomorrow. Give her some time to process things."

He nodded before tightly hugging her and whispering, "I'll figure everything out. I love you, mom."

For a long moment, she just hugged him back. "I love you, too, Henry." Giving her a sympathetic smile, he grabbed his book bag and left while Mary Margaret guided Emma to her bed, pulling the blanket up to the chin of the sobbing woman before silently leaving her to grieve.

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><p>And so, Emma found herself lying on her back, refusing to open her eyes. Once she opened them, all the wishing would be done. All the pretending would be done and everything she hoped hadn't happened would come to punch her in the face with a heck of a lot more oomph than Mayor Evil had. She sighed, keeping them closed while pushing her knotted hair from her face. Her cheeks were still damp.<p>

It wasn't until she felt a brand new damp on her wrist that she jerked her eyes open with a start. Staring at her, still aside from its gentle breathing on the bed beside her, was Graham's wolf. Its red and black eyes found hers immediately, seemingly staring into her soul. For a long moment, woman and wolf appraised each other.

The white canine moved first, accepting her and what felt like all her secrets with a soft whine and another lick to her wrist. He laid his head down upon her hip, providing and receiving comfort in the unassuming way canines did.

Emma laid like she had, simply staring at the beautiful creature. Tears pricking her eyes again, she sat up, reaching a hand out toward his thick fur. The wolf didn't stir as she began petting him, working away the tension within her. In an odd way that twelve hours before she would have dismissed as ridiculous, she found the wolf's presence comforting. It had chosen to come back to her. When Graham was gone, instead of returning to the forest or running to Mayor Evil, the one creature that Graham seemed to trust implicitly came to her. It had chosen to grieve with her. It had chosen to come and protect her. It was soothing to be chosen.

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><p>Mary Margaret gazed at the door to Emma's small room again, wondering if she should enter or not. Should she leave her be? She should try and comfort her? What Mary Margaret had always attributed to a teacher's instinct told her that even if nothing was said, it would be best to go to Emma. Grabbing two cinnamon sticks from her container, she placed one in each cup of hot chocolate she'd made. It wasn't much, but hot chocolate made everything the tiniest bit better.<p>

Both mugs nearly crashed to the wood floor after she had knocked then opened the door to a silent room. She screamed as what seemed like a very large white wolf raised his head to acknowledge her before lying it back down on Emma's stomach. A ghost of a smile appeared on Emma's face, "It's okay. He's a friend of Graham."

Struggling to make sense of things, Mary Margaret handed her one of the cups, "H-H-Here, I made you some hot chocolate. I thought you might be hungry."

"Thanks." Emma took the cup, drinking a large sip before resuming the steady circles she was kneading into the wolf's neck. "Has Henry been by yet?"

Mary Margaret shook her head, "No, not yet. I presume the mayor is keeping him on a tight leash."

Nodding absently, Emma commented, "I hope he figures out what to do. I've got a few ideas but he's read a lot more of that book than I have. Fairy tales weren't exactly my thing growing up."

"You don't mean you believe him, do you?"

Laughing in a strangled way, Emma gestured to the creature beside her, "I'm lying in bed with a red-eyed wolf who was the guardian of the guy that I fell in love with who is now dead because he broke up with the most evil bitch I have ever met for me and that death came right after I'd kissed him and he simply says 'I remember!" I couldn't read this shit in a tabloid. I've got to hand it to the kid. He's right."

"But, then, what character does that make you?" Mary Margaret knew Henry thought she was Snow White, but he'd been surprisingly mum on who Emma was.

"I'm the one who's going to make sure that the number of hearts Mayor Evil gets to break stays at two." With sudden determination painted across her face, Emma pulled herself out from under the covers and grabbed her red leather jacket. "Come on, buddy. Let's go find our narrator and defeat ourselves an evil queen. Mary Margaret, would you mind staying here…with all the doors and windows locked, maybe. Or, better yet, take a book down to the diner and just stay there all day where you're always in public."

She was out the door, the wolf hot on her heels, in moments.

Part of Mary Margaret blamed Emma's strange behavior on the shock, another defense mechanism. The first man Emma had even acknowledged liking ended up dead. She'd been a little wacky, too. But, another part of her began a list of all the odd, "coincidental" things that had happened lately: Graham's death, David and her inexplicable attraction, Regina's complete hatred of Emma, the mine, Ashley's baby and strange deal with Mr. Gold…how her touch had woken up David.

Slipping on a coat and grabbing a few books and her purse, Mary Margaret decided she was going to go with Emma on this one.

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><p>"Okay, so what've you got for me, kid? Any ideas?" Emma looked over the wolf at Henry where they sat on his castle. He had thankfully been in the backyard when she'd arrived at the mayor's residence. There was no confrontation in which she'd had to restrain herself from destroying Mayor Evil's heart.<p>

Henry continued petting the wolf between them. "Not really. Only, I know how to free the hearts of all the other people she's imprisoned if we find them. I'm not sure what to do about the sheriff."

"Graham found the hearts. At least, we know where they are just not how to get to them. How do we free them?"

He took a deep breath, "That's kind of tricky. Only one person has ever gotten their heart back from the queen. She stole the heart of a prince by the sea. He was loved by a mermaid. She sacrificed her family, her fins, and the sea to go to him. A fairy helped her sneak into the castle unseen. Once she found the prince's within the collection of hearts, nothing happened. She lost hope and began crying, lamenting—is that the right word?" Before Emma could nod, the wolf barked with the decided answer, yes. Both looked at the creature with surprise until Henry continued, "Lamenting her lost love. Her tears soaked into the prince's heart and broke the spell the queen had on him. The fairy helped them escape and they escaped the land, sailing with all their people to an island far from the Evil Queen."

They sat in silence for a long time, listening to the waves upon the rocks behind them. "So," Emma began, "the hearts can be freed with the tears of one who has sacrificed to get to them, but is without hope?"

Henry frowned, "I think the sacrifice part is right. I think the tears have to be real. They have to have lost love, not necessarily hope, but love." The wolf barked again, indicating his agreement.

Laughing bitterly, Emma shrugged, " They're close enough to the same thing, kid. I can certainly cry like that. Let's go free those hearts. Do you know what Mayor Evil was up to today?"

"I like that code name!" he exclaimed before getting back on track, "She was going to be at the hospital all day, arranging the funeral. I heard her complaining about the doctors wanting full explanations and her being stuck there for hours."

"Good, she won't get in our way. Come on, buddy." She jumped down from the playground, determined to get that evil woman where it hurt no matter what. It wouldn't bring Graham back, but it would hopefully bring other people back their loved ones. She was almost to the end of the sand, when she noticed Henry hadn't moved. "You coming, kid?"

"Did you love Sheriff Graham?"

The question caught her off guard at first. She had to think of how to word her answer. Finally nodding, she replied, "Yeah, kid, I did. It was one of those weird things and we didn't really have to time to figure it all out. I hated his annoying guts most of the time until, suddenly, I didn't…"

"It's like Snow and Charming. They didn't like each other either at first, but their adventures against the Evil Queen brought them closer until they realized they had true love. Maybe you and the sheriff did, too."

Suddenly fighting back tears that seemed to be insistent on plaguing her that day, no matter how much she resisted, Emma smiled, "Kid, whatever girl you fall in love with is going to be a lucky one. She's going to get the ultimate romantic in you." Henry looked at her oddly for a moment; unsure with his ten-year-old state of mind if that was good or bad. Emma laughed again and began following Graham's wolf, "Come on, kid."

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><p>"This is it," Emma announced as the wolf gave a short bark at the mausoleum she and Graham had broken into the night before. "Graham remembered the symbol up there from his memories. He was sure this was her vault."<p>

Henry nodded, "It's the same symbol as my book. Let's go."

Emma opened the damaged door with little effort and the odd trio snuck inside, shutting the door firmly behind them. Emma grabbed her handcuffs from her belt and put them around the door handles. They were going to have plenty of time to figure this out whether Regina wanted them to or not.

They searched the dusty, cobwebbed place, finding nothing until the wolf began whining, digging with his paws into the floor at the edge of the casket. Emma frowned, "What's you got, buddy?"

She knelt down at first, wondering if it was a button or step their guide was getting at. Finding nothing, she sighed and leaned heavily against the stone structure. With a surprised squeak, she scrambled to her feet as the whole thing began to move, revealing an eerie blue light from stairs below.

"You found it!" Henry exclaimed, excitedly pushing against it with her until they had the opening exposed. The wolf bounded down the stairs before them, sensing no danger. Emma and Henry followed immediately after, flinching as the casket slid back into place behind them.

The blue light remained bright as they descended farther. They found the wolf sniffing anxiously at a wall of little drawers. Henry's voice was a mere whisper when he declared, "It's all the hearts. We can save them."

Likewise, the gravity of the situation dawned on Emma for the first time. Taking a moment, she stared at the many drawers, wondering how someone could be that heartless… Collecting herself, she strode forward and removed the chest that the wolf was closest to, "Let's get started. There's a lot of these. Henry, once I get going, it's probably going to be like last night. You just keep handing me chests, okay."

He nodded, looking slightly pale.

Kneeling down to sit on the floor, Emma warily opened the little chest and gasped at the glowing red heart inside. It didn't beat, just glowed in a slow rhythm. She resisted the urge to touch t, not wanting to harm it. Bowing her face over the treasure, she closed her eyes and concentrated on what she knew would bring on heartbroken tears: the feel of Graham going limp against her and falling to the ground just as her heart had begun to soar with joy that finally letting someone in was okay.

Within a matter of seconds, the tears were flowing and the heart in her hands began to pulse brightly. It sped up until the stolen organ exploded into a tiny shower of sparkles, reminding Henry of fairy dust from where he stood. He scrambled to grab another chest and hand it to Emma, torn between the joy that they were helping and the pain that watching his mom cry her heart out brought. The wolf lay down beside her, resting his head in her lap, silently sending her comfort.

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><p>"What do you mean you don't know if it was her? Of course it was her! No one else was there, you idiot!"<p>

Henry and the wolf, who he had taken to calling Snowball, peered around the corner of the hospital wall four hours after they had entered the Evil Queen's vault. Emma held his hand and a handful of Snowball's fur from where she catatonically followed, not quite emerged from the ocean of grief she'd willingly drowned herself in.

Henry knew Jiminy Cricket said crying was part of healing, but he wasn't sure that Emma healed like everyone else. At least, she didn't heal with the kind of crying she had done. As she had poured every drop of pain she had over lost love into the hearts they had freed, he'd come up with a plan. He didn't know if it would work but it was worth a try. Trying meant getting Emma to the hospital and finding the sheriff's body. Snowball was good for that.

As the wolf had led them through the woods in a hidden shortcut across town, Henry knew that what they had done had helped. The curse was lifting. He'd seen two unicorns and a confused but seemingly happy family of gypsies in a bright, colorful wagon. The two little girls in the family were a grade below him in school. He almost hadn't recognized them in their bright purple dresses and braids. They had waved to the trio as they drove their horses further into the forest. When Henry had looked back, he saw nothing of them, only a bright spot of shimmering air.

Henry was beginning to really like magic.

Some of his happy feelings were gone now, as he took up the job of guiding Emma safely through the hospital without running into Mayor Evil. Thankfully, her yelling could be heard from a few blocks away. He and Snowball looked at each other for a moment before the wolf nodded toward a door marked stairs. They quickly scrambled across the hallway and were through the door before anyone noticed them.

He followed Snowball without question as the canine led them down the stairs toward the morgue. Emma's hand squeezed his when he tried to let go to open the door. The rest of her was still rather hazy, so he did his best and maneuvered around opening the large door with one hand.

Unsurprisingly, no one was in the morgue. People didn't often die in Storybrooke. Perhaps that was why the sight of Sheriff Graham's body upon a slab surprised Henry so much. He'd never actually seen a dead person before. Plus, it was odd to see the sheriff in a medical gown instead of his usual leather jacket and vest. Those were folded neatly, unfeelingly, at his feet. Nothing moved but Snowball as he trotted over to his charge and sat calmly down beside his body.

Snowball wasn't going to help him with this one it seemed. Henry took a deep breath and led Emma toward Graham. Squeezing her upper arm, he got her to look at him, "Mom, I think I have an idea."

Voice uncharacteristically shaky, Emma nodded, "What is it?"

"Kiss him."

Emma frowned, suddenly more like her old self, "What? What's that going to do?"

"Well," he began hesitantly, "you and the sheriff were like Snow and Charming. If it worked for grandma and grandpa, why wouldn't true love's kiss work for you guys, too?"

"But, Henry, he doesn't have a heart. That…That _bitch_ destroyed it."

"See, that's what I've been thinking about. What the book always says about the Huntsman is that the queen picked him because he was heartless. He didn't have a heart like normal people. His was different because he was raised by wolves. What if what the queen took and destroyed wasn't his real heart? What if loving you woke up his real one, the one she didn't have…?"

A sudden hopeful bark came from the wolf.

Emma strode forward and knelt down in front of the wolf, her new protector. They stared each other down, gray eyes on red and black. The wolf nodded his head. Her own heart beating rapidly in her chest, nagging at her in ways it never had before, Emma finally sighed, "It's worth a shot. It's not like today can really get any worse."

Standing, she came to stand next to Graham's painfully motionless head. His eyes didn't shift. His chest didn't rise. His lips didn't grin in that annoying way. All the little things that Emma hadn't consciously noticed before, she now sorely missed. Doing her best to get a hold of herself, she took a deep breath. Pushing her blonde hair behind her ears, she closed her eyes and leaned down.

Ignoring how ridiculous and self-conscious she felt, she firmly pressed her lips against Graham's painfully chilled ones. Every emotion but sadness leaving her, she just stayed like that for a moment as it hit her once again just how alone she was in her love life, how much she hadn't realized she had before she'd lost it.

She stayed kissing him, hiding from the outcome in pretending time had stopped, until she jumped out of her skin as a hand came to rest on the back of her head, pulling her closer. "Oh my God!" she screamed as her eyes shot open to find themselves face-to-face with Graham's, the same awed look in them as after their last full kiss.

Her eyes darted all over him and her hands held his face, realizing that it was now warm and alive. After I had hit her, all she could breathe was, "You came back to me!"

He smiled that incredibly ornery but adorable smile, "You brought me back, Emma. We're even now. I saved your existence once; you saved mine."

She leaned back down, kissing him again, pouring all the hope of love and happiness she had just regained into it. He thankfully did not pull away with a flashback revelation this time, his only movement to sit up and get closer to her.

Neither kept track of how long they stayed like that until they were interrupted by a grossed-out but clearly happy Henry, "Eeeeewww, really? You can't do all of this later when I'm not here?"

Emma smiled, turning to face her son, all remnants of sadness gone, "It was your idea, kid." Henry couldn't help but grin at that and Snowball's happy yip as Emma walked over and turned them both to face the wall, "All right, boss, get some clothes on. We have to prove to Mayor Evil and the rest of Storybrooke that I didn't kill you."

She had him back. Along with the love she now realized they had, they could also resume the banter she enjoyed so much.

"I can do that. Oh and Henry, I remember everything, now. Need any help with the ending the curse operation you and Emma have going?"

"I think we have room for another member on Operation Cobra…" the ten-year-old said slyly.

Emma grinned, "We'll initiate him later. You need to get home so she never knows you were gone. We'll distract her upstairs long enough for you to get home, okay?"

"Okay, mom."

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><p>"Oh. My. God."<p>

Regina's attention was taken from the multiple doctors she'd been chastising before her at a passing nurse's shocked words. As a white wolf trotted out of the elevator, followed closely by the sickeningly close Emma and Graham, her mouth dropped open in the split second it took for her mask to go up.

"I-I don't understand," she breathed. Her voice rose to a screech with her next words, "YOU SAID HE WAS DEAD!" The doctors appeared as confused as her.

Regina's eyes narrowed as possibilities began to flit dangerously through her mind. Only one plausible one came to mind: magic. She looked around for Henry but saw no sign. That wolf had to have helped Emma.

As if sensing her glare, the canine bared his teeth at her, growling deep in his predator's throat. The fear it instilled in her by instinct caused her to become aware of a sudden emptiness. She suddenly stood paralyzed: her hearts! Without another word, she sprinted from the facility, needing to know her power was still at hand.

Emma smirked triumphantly at Regina's retreat. Frowning, Graham whispered, "What was that about?"

"I freed all of her pets. She has nothing anymore."

Understanding immediately from his other memories, he smiled back before turning to the doctor, "I feel perfectly fine, now. I must have eaten something odd and it caused a coma of some kind. My deputy has kindly offered to take care of me tonight. I'll let you know if anything changes."

Tightening the hold he had on Emma's waist after she tensed in surprise briefly before relaxing into his side, Graham turned and began walking toward the door, his wolf leading the way through the automatic doors. They followed the now puppyish wolf down the street. "So," Emma began as they headed toward the diner to find Mary Margaret, "what've you got for memories, hunter man?"

"I'll tell you tomorrow."

Emma frowned, "Why? Why not now?"

Graham smiled, stopping and taking her face in his hands, "Emma, I haven't had a heart in a very long time." He leaned in, pressing his forehead against hers, "Let me enjoy giving it to you." Before the very un-Emma-like, giddy smile could fully form on her lips, he swiftly kissed it off. His wolf let out a long, triumphant howl from where he sat at their feet.

The story wasn't over. The curse wasn't broken…yet. The happy endings weren't quite saved. But, for that wonderful moment, Emma and the Huntsman basked in their happy ending.


	2. Hope For Souls

Okay, so I really love this show and I've decided to continue with my little dabbling here! Storybrooke is just sad without Graham in it. :) I'm going to go episode by episode, taking their plot in hand with mine. I know I'm a week behind at the moment but I'll work on that, I promise.

I'm going to try and make every chapter/episode able to stand on its own, so no big cliff hangers. I've got a lot on my plate with university this semester, and my longer stories are suffering for it, but I just needed to write again. So, this one I'm going to try very hard to keep up on since it isn't so much of a huge commitment and it just makes me happy writing on it. Let me know what you think and thanks for reading. :)

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><p>"What do you mean you're leaving?" Emma detested the desperate almost whiny quality her voice had taken, but couldn't take it back once it was out of her mouth.<p>

Looking at her with a mixture of amusement and compassion, Graham sighed, squeezing her shoulders, "Emma, I can't stay in town. Not anymore. If there is one thing I remember about the Evil Queen, it is that she hates having any failures within her line of sight. Those failures generally end up dead and I don't want to be dead…again."

Pulling away from him and glaring at the wall, she declared, "I know, I don't either but…but you-you just died! I just had to deal with you dying! I can't deal with you leaving three days later." Graham was making an irritating amount of sense. She had to counter it with something, desperation now in the category of things she was not too proud to use.

"Those three days have also been spent in Mary Margaret's apartment. Regina hasn't seen either of us since she discovered her…_loss_."

"But she doesn't have your heart anymore! She can't kill you the magical way!"

Grabbing her elbow and turning her around, he hugged her to him before she could get her sass properly in place. A very large part of him—the odd, tingly, always warm when around Emma part that he'd just recently discovered he had—wanted nothing more than to stay. Staying shut up in an apartment for the foreseeable future with the woman he was in love with sounded pretty good. However, another part of him was restless. It needed open spaces, forests, and wildlife. That part was the one telling him that in order to maintain both their lives, he needed to leave.

He had his memories back: it was time he started using them and his old skills. No one was better than him at hunting. Operation Cobra needed a good hunter. However, his game was definitely different than what he remembered from the Enchanted Forest. Now he was hunting ways to end a curse.

Neither part of him wanted to leave Emma. Falling in love for the first time in both your alternate lives wasn't something to be taken lightly. Plus, he knew that leaving Emma wasn't the most sensitive thing to do. She had issues with commitment and leaving and being alone and abandonment.

Bearing that in mind, he pressed a lingering kiss to her temple before explaining, "Emma, love, I don't want to leave, I promise. It's not that I want to. I have to. The sooner we get all of this fixed, the sooner I can carry you off into some forest and never leave you alone ever again. Emma, I can help, but I can't help here. I wasn't made to be around people."

Snorting into his chest, she retorted, "Isn't that the truth. You're too ornery to have been raised by people."

"That's what makes me endearing," he grinned in that incredibly ornery way he had. Grasping onto the bit of spark and happiness she now showed, he leaned down and kissed her. He could feel the anxiety leave her as she melted into him.

While he'd never had the conscious or willing chance to test them out in his other life, Graham was really very proud of his kissing skills here. Since he'd come back from the unpleasant affair of being dead, Emma had been far from shy in kissing him every chance she got and vice versa. Even after he'd lost count, she still reacted the same way. The tough as nails aura she had about her vanished. She melted into him, allowing him to wrap his arms around her and pull her as close as humanly possible. She let her walls down just for him. Being an expert on putting up walls, Graham was honored to his core that she gave them up for him so easily. He doubted many things about people, especially now that he knew how horrible he was with them, but one of them would never be if Emma Swan loved him. As long as she kissed him like that, he'd know.

It suddenly struck him that it must be part of the true love thing Henry had talked about.

The little boy had given him…he wasn't sure how to put it exactly…"the talk."

The day after Graham had walked out of the hospital, Henry had come over to his teacher's home with the express purpose of talking to him. When he'd arrived Emma had been in the shower, giving the little boy an open opportunity to ask outright, "Sheriff, are you in love with my mom?"

The orange juice Graham had been drinking abruptly choked him.

Once he had the ability to breathe again, he looked at Henry with a smile, "Yes, Henry, I am."

"Good," he said with narrowed eyes. There was a seriousness in Henry's demeanor that, despite his age, couldn't be ignored. "Look," he continued as he climbed up on one of the stools by the island, "I love my mom. I know that she talks like she's tough and never seems vulnerable, but she's a girl and they've got hearts. I know I'm just a kid, but don't break my mom's heart. I'll figure out something to do to you."

"Look, Henry, I'm not going to do anything to hurt your mom, I promise. I might not always be with her, but I promise I'll never willfully hurt her."

Shuddering a bit, the boy nodded, "Good. You didn't see how she was when you'd died. It was bad. I'm glad true love's kiss worked. I don't know what she would've done…"

"The what?" Graham queried. He hadn't really asked how he'd come back. He and his previous memories gave him some idea, but Henry was kind of the expert on this stuff.

"True love's kiss. It's what brought you back. The book always said you didn't have a heart like everyone else. I figured my mom isn't like anyone else, either. You guys fit." Despite his innate maturity, Henry didn't catch the expression on the sheriff's face that clearly said something profound had occurred to him. He merely continued on, "So, what've you got for me on Operation Cobra?"

"Well, I know that the Evil Queen is the big bad guy, but there's someone else I think we need to focus on…"

Graham knew before Henry said it, "Mr. Gold. I can't remember him from the other world, but then meeting people wasn't my forte. I don't know what I can do, but I'll look into him."

Henry nodded, "We need to and fast. Emma owes him a favor…"

And so, Graham was now leaving. He hadn't waited longer than twenty-four hours. Emma was his deputy, so she'd end up the new sheriff. That'd give her a good, safe position from Regina while he played around with the odd predicament he was in. He didn't know if he could actually get to the fairy tale world, but the restlessness he had stirring within him was pointing him in a very firm direction.

Pulling away with a sad smile, he pressed a kiss to Emma's forehead, "I'll come back. I promise. Henry's just got me out on a mission."

Sighing, Emma nodded, "Maybe it's good. All this whining I'm starting to do is creeping me out." She shuddered with her confused look on her face.

Chuckling, he kissed her one last time before grabbing his leather jacket and walking out the backdoor to find Snowball—whose name was quite different, but the wolf had taken a liking to Henry's version—sitting there patiently. The wolf got up from its guardian pose, trotting over and licking Emma's hand once. He stood up, putting his paws on her stomach, and they exchanged a long look.

Smiling finally, Emma scratched him behind his right ear, "Take care of him and I'll cook you meatballs." Snowball barked approvingly and then cantered out of the building, Graham close behind, looking back longingly. Leaning against the door, Emma held on hand up to them in a wave until they were out of sight in the forest behind Mary Margaret's home.

* * *

><p>"I know you remember!" Graham shouted. The rather rickety wooden door he was pounding on creaked on its hinges at the force of his blows. It had taken him almost two weeks but whatever instinct he'd inherited from his lupine kin had led him to the small cottage before him. Something about how it smelled was wrong.<p>

It smelled like lies. He wasn't sure what that meant despite his own mind telling him, but he believed it. It didn't matter how it smelled, the mere fantastical appearance of the cottage had to count for something.

The fortnight it had taken to get there had reawakened many things. Being outdoorsy had never really been his thing before, now he felt as at home sleeping on the ground as in a bed. He'd caught a fish with his bare hands and somehow the long knife Snowball had dug up for him felt more natural on his hip than his police issue sidearm. He felt and knew he was between two worlds, but it wasn't uncomfortable like it was always described.

No, instead he was content with who and what he was now that he knew what those were. Before he'd felt cold and incomplete. Now, he knew what he wanted and needed. Who he needed wasn't with him right then, but it was for her. It had occurred to him that the old Huntsman would never been unable to sleep from missing a woman. He was happy with this new heart Emma had found for him. Of course, she'd taken it before she even knew it existed, but he trusted her with it.

An angered, rather strangled yell came from within the structure and he halted his pounding. The door creaked pitifully as it was opened, revealing a tall blonde woman of an indiscernible age. The pallor of her skin and almost dusty quality of her hair made her appear aged, but there was a youth in the brightness of her dark eyes that let one know differently. As her eyes scanned up and down his body in obvious recognition, his hand tightened on his knife. There was no way he was underestimating her.

"Hello, Maleficent. It's been a long time."

Cackling in a way as contradictory as her appearance, she gestured for him to enter, "It has indeed, Huntsman."

He walked in cautiously, Snowball right behind. The wolf's nose was sniffing at everything, the growl of a whine in his throat exhibiting his dislike. The witch of fantasy merely laughed again. She swirled past them, her long magenta cloak clashing oddly with her jeans and frilly sweater. Sashaying across the small room, she alighted in one of her sumptuous armchairs. Despite the impoverished exterior of her home, the inside was lavish, though clearly decaying.

"It's been a long time since I've seen anyway, now that you mention it, love." Taking a deep drink from her wine glass, she giggled bitterly, hatred simmering clearly beneath the surface, "Your lover made very sure of that before she released my gift. I'd always been a firm believer in the ideology that the best weapon is one you never have to use. Unfortunately, your old madam believed it was the one you only have to use once. I'll tell you, friendship never gets you anywhere but confined to a hut as your magic wastes away with the years. How is that bitch, anyway?"

Standing uncomfortably, not just from his company but the claustrophobic quality of the space, Graham took a moment to collect himself and his words. "She's…been better. She's hit a bit of a snag in her plans."

Maleficent nearly splashed herself with her own wine, "Really?" Setting the glass down, she leaned forward with interest, "Do tell more, Huntsman. How is it you're not simpering heart and mindlessly at her bedside?"

"Someone arrived. She's been giving the queen quite a bit of trouble. She freed my heart. She freed all the hearts."

"Excellent!" Maleficent's eyes glittered with happiness and a scheming mind. The similarities between her and Regina were really quite startling. Graham had the urge to begin inching for the door. He didn't want to kill her—she was too valuable a potential ally—but he really didn't want to be in her company, either.

"So the curse breaker had come, has she?" She took in Graham's surprised expression as she poured herself another glass of wine with a snort, "Don't look at me like that. I'm the one who got the curse originally. I know its ins and outs. She—what is she called now, Regina?—is the one that didn't get the owner's manual upon purchase. If she'd asked, she'd have known that every curse had an escape clause. It's inevitable, really. The universe deems it necessary to give good the chance to win over us evil. It's quite tiresome to be honest. And now she's lost her power because of the breaker. You made this visit at a grand time."

Despairing a bit inside at every word, Graham began, "I need your help."

"Really…?" There was far too much excitement in her tone for it to bode well. "What could I possibly do for you, mighty Huntsman? Or better yet, why?"

"I know what it's like to have had the Evil Queen as a mistress."

"In more ways than one, I know," Maleficent threw in merrily.

Glaring, he continued, "I'm not going to let her reign, here or there, any longer. You must hate her as much as I do. Help us defeat her."

"Ah, the enemy of my enemy is my ally and all that," Maleficent mused, stroking a cat that had appeared out of nowhere. Its eyes were oddly large with no pupils and its tail was oddly shaggy. Along its neck it had what could only be described as a mane. The mark on its forehead was shaped oddly like a horn. More than its odd appearance, it just smelled wrong. It smelled more like horse and magic than cat.

The former sorceress stood and walked over to him, seemingly ignoring how he backed away a few steps. Her voice held the most sincere tone he'd ever known her to use when she stated, "I no longer have the powers I once held. I cannot merely march out into the forest and strike her down as I once could have. I cannot even leave this cursed shack. My magic wanes every day. What you know as the curse is far worse for me, I assure you. I remember everything, but that is all I can do. She sentenced me to a life of helplessness. I'm not sure how I can help you, but if I can I will with no strings. If you can get me back home, you'll owe me no underhanded extras."

He nodded, "You and the kingdom can go back to being normal enemies."

She smiled with what he swore were tears in her eyes, "I would like that more than you can imagine." Putting her bravado back with implacable agility, she swept back to her chair. "So what do you think I can help you with?"

"Information. The Evil Queen is being dealt with all right as it is. It's someone else in town that poses trouble. His name is Mr. Gold."

Maleficent frowned, "What could I possibly give you about him? You have your memories back just as completely as mine have remained."

Smirking, feeling disturbingly more comfortable now, Graham responded, "Yes, but I was living in a forest with wolves for twenty years while you knew every slightly evil being in the land. I figured he was more in your social class."

A regal sort of nostalgia crossing her face, Maleficent smiled, "I was rather the queen of the party, wasn't I. Tell me all you can about this Mr. Gold. I'll figure out who he is for you."

* * *

><p>It was a far quicker trip back to Storybrooke than it had been to Maleficent's prison. Graham got the odd feeling that she made it move about the forest.<p>

What Maleficent lacked in sheer ruthlessness, she made up for in cunning. Regina was a rabid wolf—indiscriminately angry, manically driven, and recklessly violent. Maleficent was a minx—calculating, equally driven, but cautiously patient. He'd rather hunt the former than the latter.

Plus, he just didn't like the way she looked at him. It gave him creepy crawlies.

However, those thoughts were pushed from his mind as he made his silent way into town. There were few people about, the diner seeming to be the hot spot of the evening. He avoided it, picking up a newspaper as he went to make him appear less…forresty. He was in jeans, black hiking boots, and a thick black coat but with how different he felt being in town, he knew he had to appear different, too.

It wasn't until he broke unobtrusively into Mary Margaret's house that he had a chance to actually read the newspaper. It took a very large glass of bourbon—that looked as if Emma had been dipping into it, too—and Snowball growling at him from the door to keep him from running outside.

He didn't care that he was laying low. Having Emma almost die in a fire was not something any of his instincts—lupine or human—was going to take lightly. Sitting restlessly was now how he wanted to address his concerns.

But, he did anyway.

Emma was still in a daze when she and Mary Margaret walked home from the diner. She was sheriff. She was sheriff fair and square. She really couldn't believe it. After the desperation she'd been feeling the last two weeks with Graham's departure and Regina's very charged bitchiness, she'd needed it. All she needed now was for Graham to come back. Henry was very quiet about his mission, but she wished he'd be finished already.

Mary Margaret seemed to understand, because she'd been rather quiet as they'd walked back. They both seemed to do their thinking better in silence. It was just nice to have somewhere there, too. If Henry was right, it was a family resemblance…

Emma's mind had wandered to that when Mary Margaret suddenly screamed as she flipped on her light. She held a hand to her heart, catching her breath, as Emma sprinted past her. "I have got to get better locks! First wolves, now men." She couldn't help but smile, though, as Emma threw her arms around Graham and all but squealed happily.

"You're back! I missed you!" she exclaimed, pulling him down into a fierce kiss before he could make any sort of response.

Both were smiling when they pulled away and Mary Margaret suddenly felt like an intruder. Locking the front door, she quietly made her way to her room, knowing the two in her kitchen wouldn't notice.

It took him a moment, but finally Graham's head caught up with his soaring heart. It had the tendency of outrunning every other part of him, leaving him in a wonderful emotional daze.

Frowning, he took a firm grip of Emma's shoulders and demanded, "Explain to me how you got caught in a fire! I leave you for two minutes and you're almost dying!"

"I was not going to die!" she shot back, half annoyed and half touched at his concern on her behalf. "For one, you've been gone two weeks. Two very, very long weeks! And, for two, Mr. Gold planned the fire. I got his help in winning the election the _mayor_ insisted on having. I have since dispensed with his help, but he apparently had it under control."

Graham stiffened at the mention of Mr. Gold. Snowball's hackles raised and Graham couldn't agree with his deep growl more. She looked at the two of them in bewilderment, immediately understand there was a connection of some kind between the man and their sudden irritation. "What? What is it? Does Mr. Gold have something to do with what Henry sent you to do?"

"Mr. Gold was the entire reason I went. Henry doesn't trust him and neither do I, especially if you owe him a favor."

Emma cringed, remembering the deal she made for the good of Ashley and her child. "I forgot about that…" It hadn't seemed so life-threateningly sinister at the time, but now that she knew the lengths he would go to, she was honestly kind of scared.

Pulling her into a hug and kissing her forehead, Graham stated, "Don't worry. Henry will have a plan once I tell him what I learned. I know his name. He won't ever try and collect that favor, I promise."

Frowning gray eyes were turned up to search his for a long moment. "What do you mean? We already know his name? What fairy tale thing am I missing?"

Graham couldn't help but smile with a certain amount of triumph. She'd understand once he told her and so would Henry. The Evil Queen was losing power in multiple ways, and they'd just found the Achilles' heel of the other villain in town. The curse could be dealt with.

"His real name is Rumplestiltskin."


	3. Finding North

So, this isn't much of a chapter, but it's what came out. It just felt odd pushing a big sense of plot onto this episode, so a small showcase of Emma's feelings and her and Graham simply together came out. I'll work on this week's and figure some more things out. As always, thanks for reading!

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><p>"And she wants me to take them to Boston! I'm not taking them to Boston. And I am not letting them be split up. I'm not doing that to them. They're a bit mixed up inside maybe, but they're good kids. I'm not letting them go through what I…"<p>

Emma trailed off abruptly, looking over at a silent Graham. He was looking at her with clear concern. For a brief moment, she wanted to begin yelling at him or something or anything. It was odd to be so…cared for. It was also odd that she'd missed his presence so much. He'd been gone for a week and it had felt like she was dying.

Finally, settling on just huffing in frustration, she dropped down onto the bed beside him. Without a word, he put his arms around her and pulled her to him. After a few minutes, he kissed her temple and stated, "You're not going to let them go through what you did. Emma, one of the best things about you is that you never do something you don't believe in doing. You won't let anything happen to those kids."

Groaning, suddenly very tired of all the fighting she'd been doing since coming to town, she replied, "Let's hope you're right."

"Hey," he demanded, turning her shoulders so she had to look at him, "don't talk like that. You'll fix this."

"I just don't know what I can do," she admitted. "For once, Mayor Evil has a valid point. This is what's supposed to happen, I just don't want to let it. What am I supposed to do?"

"Well, for one, you can't leave. Bad things will happen. Henry sat me down today over chocolate chip muffins and had a talk with me about it. He wasn't sure exactly what would happen, but the idea of them leaving town has him spooked. The kid's scared to death about if you guys try and leave."

Smiling, Emma nodded, "That's Henry for you. I swear I don't know how he grew up to be the great kid he did being raised by that woman." She shuddered at the thought. She knew she'd given Henry up willingly, but it chilled her that she'd given him up to that woman.

Grinning, Graham pulled her down to him, "That one's simple: having this need to help people runs in the family."

Laughing, Emma rolled her eyes, "Shut up. He thankfully didn't get anything from me."

Sighing teasingly, he put a hand behind her head and pulled her close, "Swan, sometimes you're really not that smart." He kissed her before she could protest.

* * *

><p>When Emma awoke the next morning, Graham was gone.<p>

She couldn't say it didn't sadden her every time he did so. She'd become unnervingly accustomed to sleeping next to him, and missed the odd peace she felt when he was there. He disappeared back into the forest, working on some secret mission for Henry, on a regular basis these days. The two didn't necessarily refuse to tell her what it was, but she caught the vibe that they weren't ready to fill her in quite yet. Assuming they were saving her from some false hope, she buried herself in her sheriff's duties and her burgeoning friendship with Mary Margaret…her mom…whatever.

At first, she'd tried to force the ill-ease away by convincing herself she was happy he was gone. With him away, she could do as she wished and-and…she hadn't gotten much farther than that. Disturbing but true as it may be, she was in love with him and just wanted him around all the time.

Sighing as she rolled out of bed, pulling her long blonde hair back, she pulled on his leather jacket to eat breakfast in. She had a job to do and so did he. War had never bragged to be easy on those involved, therefore, she was going to fight her battles with Regina and end the damned curse as quickly as possible.

When the curse was gone, she could be with her man and her kid. What better reason to keep fighting?

Sitting down to her coffee, her mind was already whirling with how to keep this world's Hansel and Gretel in town.


	4. Time

Hello there everyone! So, there's quite a bit more to this chapter than the last (I'm rather proud!). Sorry about any spelling and grammar mistakes, this all wrote itself rather quickly. Let me know what you think and thanks so much for reading!

(Oh, I should probably start doing this) Disclaimer: I don't own. See profile for the long version.

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><p>Grumbling to herself, Emma Swan pulled the flaps of her block hat tighter about her ears. Since when did Maine get so darn cold? Henry said he couldn't recall a storm like the one said to be heading their way. Emma had had her fair share of Nor'easters her few short years in Boston, but she'd gone soft since she came to Storybrooke. The cold was killing her. It was deceptively sunny, the clouds only just overtaking the sky, but the temperature had plummeted to an unexpected low given the time of year.<p>

Hiking her bag up over her shoulder, she pulled her long socks up a little more, wiggling her toes to keep them warm. She ran for her cruiser, intending to head to the station and pack it with all bad weather supplies someone in trouble could possibly need. She'd only gotten half way there before she was tackled from behind.

Screeching in surprise and immediately reaching for her gun as she rolled over, she froze when her face was excitedly licked. "Snowball!"

She couldn't settle on annoyance at being knocked down or happiness at his appearance at first. Snowball meant Graham was nearby. The two hadn't been separated by more than a bathroom door since she'd brought her boyfriend back from the dead. Yapping in a pleased way, Snowball gave her one last lick of salutations before hopping back a few steps, waiting for her to rise.

Smiling, she sighed before scratching him behind the ears. What as the point of even trying to be angry at the wolf? His wagging tail and happily lolling tongue had the same effect as Graham's ornery grin. They both made her melt a little inside. Once upon a time, she'd never have had that problem…oddly enough, she was happier with the melting.

"So, what's your mission here today, Snowball?" Yapping again, he pressed his head up under her hand before trotting toward the forest. "Hiking it is," she shrugged, pulling her coat closer to her.

* * *

><p>Crouching behind the diner, Graham waited, trying to stop the occasional foot-tapping that his impatience caused. It was a bad habit he'd never quite been able to quit. While most people's impatience foot-tapping was incessant, his was once or twice a minute. Even so, it was bad hunting technique. Snowball would have turned and glared at him with his bi-colored eyes.<p>

Speaking of, it felt odd being without his lupine companion that day, especially given the impending storm. Graham didn't have a problem with storms, quite the opposite in fact, he loved them. However, they always made the hair on the back of his neck stand up. Storms were dangerous and given that, he felt the instinct to gather all those he loved about him…not send them off into the forest.

Snowball had a job to do that didn't involve him. Emma didn't know it yet, but she was Snowball's job for the day. Henry was his.

Given how things had stagnated in the last week or so, Henry and Graham had decided to give things a couple of pushes. Regina had certainly chosen a strong curse to unleash when she decided she hated the world… So, with the storm and the resulting school cancellation, he and Henry were off to metaphorically start a couple pebbles down the mountainside.

Henry ran up panting, book bag bouncing against his back. "I'm sorry I'm late! There was a man, the stranger. I talked to the stranger."

Nodding, Graham rose from the shadows and urged the kid on as they ran for the forest, "It's fine, Henry. We've still got plenty of time. Snow just left her house. We've got plenty of time to put the bird in place."

Looking over his shoulder after they'd hit the tree line to find nothing, he relaxed. "So tell me about this stranger. Any ideas?"

Henry shook his head, "None yet. I think the Evil Queen is going to make mom try and kick him out. She found me talking to him today. She was freaking out."

Returning the boy's grin, Graham nodded, leading them through the tree parallel to the road, "Great."

* * *

><p>"Snowball! Snowball, what're we doing out here?" Shrieking as she tripped over yet another tree root, Emma pushed herself up against the wind. The wolf waited patiently for her, answering only with a lick to the face before trotting forward again. "Emma Swan, a few months ago, talking to wolves and trekking through woodland would not be your daily activities!"<p>

Trudging on, she pulled her hat down farther. She wasn't sure how long they'd been working their way through the forest, but she hadn't caught a glimpse of Graham or another wolf or really anything but trees. What was going on here? She knew there had to be a point, but she was really starting to despise how they didn't tell her anything.

When had ignorance ever been a good thing when fighting a war?

She had just narrowly avoided walking straight into a tree while in her deep ponderings, when Snowball barked harshly against the scream of the wind. Before them, appearing almost out of nowhere stood a small cabin at the base of a stony hill that she also hadn't noticed.

Looking from the house to the petite mountain to the wolf wagging its tail at her feet, she declared, "I am not _that_ unobservant…am I?" Snowball shook his head. Narrowing her gray eyes, she mumbled, "I think I'm going to hate magic…" Scratching Snowball behind the ears for a moment as she collected herself, Emma stared at the seemingly abandoned building. It looked like something out of a brochure from Disneyworld. It looked like a miniature cross between a Nordic mead hall and that house in the old animated Snow White movie

…Oh wait….

"I really need to catch up on my Disney movies, Snowball." She took the first step toward the cabin, though was soon overtaken by the suddenly excited canine. He bounded past her to the door and waited by it patiently until she reached for the handle, one hand on her gun.

Pushing the ornately carved door open, she looked about the darkened, dusty space, "Hello? Hello, this is the sheriff. Is anyone home?"

Before she could take another step into the short foyer, she found seven objects of varying make but equal dangerousness pointed at her. Raising an eyebrow at the wolf at her feet, she merely said, "I blame you, Snowball."

* * *

><p>Henry had to fight to keep quiet as he watched his teacher coo concernedly over the bird she'd found, conveniently unscathed in any way, caught in wire at the base of a tree.<p>

Graham really wasn't lying when he said he'd gotten all his old hunting skills back. The guy had practically just reached into a tree and grabbed the creature without an injury or noise of protest. He really wanted a magical power, too. Maybe he could be a mind reader or a wizard or something cool!

He got a clear glimpse of Mary Margaret's talent as he saw the bird calm in her hold. Snow was famous for her way with animals, especially those with wings. Yes, Mary Margaret was definitely Snow White. All he and Graham had to do was convince her of that.

After she'd run up the road, bird held gently to her chest, he turned to Graham, "What do you think we should do now?"

Graham nodded up toward the darkening sky, "She and Charming should be able to do the rest themselves. The bird is special. It has to have its flock otherwise it gets depressed and dies. She'll fight to get it back here to its family, and as long as he hasn't completely lost his mind, Charming won't let her go anywhere near the forest alone. I don't know what we can do besides throw them together as much as possible."

Sighing as they walked back toward town, Henry rolled his eyes, "Why does love have to be so hard? It's stupid. They love each other—they have _the_ love of all literature—why can't they still feel it?"

"Sometimes your head has the annoying habit of trying to override your heart, kid. It thinks it knows what's good for you and steps on your heart in the process. Plus, Snow was never the type to go after a married man." Smiling down at the downtrodden looking boy, Graham clapped him on the shoulder, "We're doing good here, Henry. I promise she's not winning."

"I just wish it all wasn't so hard. I wish it wasn't lives we were messing with. I'm always scared we're going to screw something up for forever…"

"Take from one with experience, Henry, most of us can't get worse than where we are in Storybrooke. I can't believe I'm the only one who knew deep down that I didn't belong here and this life wasn't right. I think we all just got too good at hiding it."

Henry stared at the ground as they walked, "Why can't everybody just be nice to everybody else? Why does the Queen have to ruin everybody else to be happy?"

Unsure of what to say, Graham stood there without a word for a long moment. Before he could get anything out, a deceptively merry voice greeted their ears.

"Because she can never be happy, she can never, and she knows it now that it's too late."

Gasping, Henry stared up at the blonde woman in the dark magenta cloak before him. Smiling, from the doorway of the shack that had just appeared, she continued, "I've wanted to meet you, Narrator. I hoped a childhood with Evi wouldn't ruin you. Hello, Huntsman."

Hand protectively on the boy's shoulder, Graham nodded to her before stating the obvious to the awestruck Henry, "Henry, this is Maleficent."

Giving them both her dazzling smile, she held the door open wide, "Come in. Having visitors has proved most helpful to my magic lately. Let's see how good the guide for our curse breaker is, Huntsman."

Frowning in determination, Henry strode forward before Graham could say anything. She remembered. He wanted to know what she remembered. He wanted to understand. Hugging his backpack to his chest, he sat down in the plush chair she gestured to. Graham stood uncomfortably between the chair and the wall after the door had closed. The heavy click of the door seemed to pain him.

"So," Maleficent began grandly, "you're our narrator. You're certainly not much, are you? I didn't expect you to be a child."

"Who else would believe but a kid? It took him dying to convince my mom." Smirking in a way oddly reminiscent of Emma, he raised an eyebrow at the witch before him, "Besides, who cares what you think? You're the one who lost all her power."

Smiling even broader, Maleficent glanced back at the Huntsman, "I like him. He's got an innocent sort of sass. Are you sure he isn't yours? He reminds me of you before she took your heart…"

"Yes, I'm sure." However, now that the wayward thought had been planted in his brain, Graham couldn't help but start to think about it. He wasn't Henry's, but what would it be like to be a…father? The thought terrified him as much as it excited him.

"I wish," Henry exclaimed. "He'd be a great dad!" Okay, Graham felt a tad bit less terrified. Henry pressed valiantly on despite the intimidating nature of Maleficent's full gaze. "What do you mean that the Queen can't be happy? Wasn't that the point of the curse? So everyone else would suffer and she'd be happy?"

Stroking the black unicorn/cat in her lap, Maleficent grinned with obvious giddiness at her friend's misfortune, "Henry, she made the one mistake no villain can ever afford to make. She crossed a line that we can never cross. She did something so terrible that the one person she can never _ever_ get forgiveness from is herself."

He looked so positively confused that she chuckled a bit before elaborating, "That curse was a true Rumplestiltskin creation: no one wins but him. In order for the curse to work, she had to murder and cut out the heart of the thing she loved most. She had to stab her father in the chest and burn his heart for her revenge. Now, she didn't realize it then, and she still doesn't now, but the reason no one will love her is because she can't even love herself. We villains are an odd paradox of vanity and self-loathing, now aren't we?" Smiling brightly at the two of them, she queried, "Any questions?"

Graham remained silent, thoughts suddenly drawn to Emma and how infinitely grateful he was that she had decided to love him. Self-loathing hadn't been his problem. He just hadn't been able to love at all. He couldn't thank enough powers of the universe that she'd for some reason decided on _him_.

Henry's mind stayed more on the task at hand. "So, how does that equate to her not being able to win?"

"Wow," the sorceress crooned, "we are a smart one. Such big words for such a small mouth. Perhaps you were meant to be the narrator, after all. Now, I know that Rowling lady pounded it into every adolescent's brain from here to the edge of the alternate universe, but love has power. Love has the tendency to break all other magic. Love is the original magic: it doesn't have an equal. Love has a domino effect. If you can get one love to break through the curse, the rest will break it like starving man's bones. Plus, your curse breaker loves people which means she has people to fight for. The people with loved ones to fight for always fight harder and longer. Evi can't even love herself, which gives you the advantage."

"Of course," she added while taking a deep sip from her wine glass, "that doesn't mean she'll go down without a fight. Oh no. The question about the Queen shouldn't be if she'll win. No, the question should be how many people she'll take with her before she's defeated."

Eyes wide and knuckles white with clutching the book within his bag so tightly, Henry asked shakily, "W-Why doesn't that make me feel any better?"

"You know what they say. Ignorance is bliss. Would you like a scone?" As both Henry and Graham recoiled, she grinned malevolently, "Evi is the one into poison, not me."

When Graham and Henry left, the storm was in full swing with rain and lightning filling the skies. Yelling against the wind as they hurried back to town, Henry stated, "She scares me!"

"Welcome to the club! But, if she says we're on the right track, then we are!"

"Let's not have her meet my mom!"

"You're damn right we're not! Come on, Snowball should have her back home by now!"

* * *

><p>"Would you mind not threatening my life? I've kind of had a hell of a morning," Emma demanded testily as seven rather short men continued to stand before her in silence with various weapons pointing at her chest. Snowball, no help at all, sat before her with his tail wagging and tongue lolling. Apparently, this was part of his plan.<p>

Since when had she begun letting canines decide her strategy? Life was just odd sometimes…

Gruff voice interrupting her reverie, one of the men stated with a menacing glare, "We'll be happy to end your pain for you."

Speaking from what felt like a long-buried recess of her brain, Emma answered without thinking, "No, I'd rather keep it. My pain is a part of me." Both she and the small man froze after the words had left her mouth, staring through each other.

She started as he spoke again, "You remind me of her."

"W-What? Who?"

"Snow, of course. You're Emma, aren't you."

The group then stepped fully into the light. Emma looked at the eight small men, dressed in simple clothes one would expect of construction workers, but with expressions of recognition that were not of her world. Her mind immediately went to how. She knew she was supposed to break the curse, but it had never been quite that easy before. What had triggered…whatever that had been? Swallowing, she nodded, "Yes, I'm Emma."

The gruff one, still the only to speak, suddenly smiled, "You're so much like her. It's kind of scary, actually. Does she know?" The one she assumed was Grumpy and one with glasses that could only be Doc led her to a chair before they all crowded in seats about her.

"No. No, she doesn't know yet. She and Charming are kind of…stuck."

Rolling his drowsy eyes, Sleepy stated bitterly, "With those two, isn't everything always complicated?" Yawn. "For being destined, those two are a pain to…" he paused to yawn again, "…to get together."

Smiling in spite of herself, Emma asked, "Any ideas?"

"Tell her not to be with him," Grumpy stated. "She can't not be with him. She just can't do it. The stories may paint her as feminine and weak, but she's a fighter. She'll fight for him. Like I say, you remind me of her." Never being complimented on being like a parent before in his entire life, Emma felt the pleased blush rise in her cheeks.

As she and Snowball ran through the rain that had just begun to pound down upon the world, Emma couldn't keep the warmth from her chest. Graham loved her. Henry loved her. Her parents loved each other. Her mother's friends loved her and had asked her to come back soon.

Crazy as Storybrooke was, Emma felt truly happy for the first time in her life.

* * *

><p>"He's a writer, kid. That's all I've got." Frowning in remembrance of the stranger's attitude, Emma added the evening a day after the storm had passed, "A snarky writer, at that."<p>

Henry mused as he brought two large bowls of popcorn from Mary Margaret's microwave over to her little living room. "I wonder who he could be? I don't know why one of the Grimms or Anderson would be here. They weren't in the Enchanted Land. I'll have to think."

Smiling with a certain glow about her, Mary Margaret rolled her eyes as she handed a cinnamon hot chocolate to everyone. "You three and this curse of yours..."

Usually, she'd fight against their odd belief a bit more vocally, but she was in too good of a mood. Yes, she'd almost fallen off a cliff and died. Yes, she'd been stuck out in a storm with the man she was in love with but who was married. Yes, she'd had to straight up tell him to shove off.

BUT…

She'd also had the most amazing kiss of her life with him. In that wonderful moment, nothing had mattered to either of them except the other. Nothing was important except that they loved each other, damn the complications.

It wasn't much, but she could live off that moment for a while. She could draw the happiness from it she needed so much. Knowing she was loved squashed that loneliness she'd been plagued with ever since she could remember. David loved her. Emma loved her. Henry loved her in his own way. And Graham was a true friend; he was all but an official roommate at this point.

The three of them just smiled over at her as she settled into her chair, patting the space next to her for Snowball to have. The friendly wolf bounded up beside her without need of a second invitation. She could only laugh as he padded himself in a little circle before settling comfortably in her lap.

"So what are we watching?" Graham asked with his smirk as he held Emma tighter where they sat together on the couch. She smiled up at him before pulling him down for a kiss.

"Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," Henry asked after making a grossed out face at them. "Mom needs to catch up. She's never seen Disney movies."

As the Disney castle appeared, the theme played, and the antique style credits began to roll, Henry took in his family. Maleficent was right. He was ten and he could see the way one kiss was helping his teacher/grandmother. And, he could see the way that love was supposed to be with the happily, effortless way life seemed to be when Graham and Emma were together, despite everything in the world that said they shouldn't be together. If their love was any more tangible, he'd be able to reach out and grab it.

Love was powerful and it was a power that they had. They had time to make things right. What more did they need?


	5. Dangerous Paths to Poisonous Fruit

Why hello there everyone. I apologize for the tardiness of this update. My university's internet was being stupidly slow all week and I only had the ability to watch the show for more than four seconds at a time yesterday. Also, sorry for how short this one is. Not a whole lot came to me, so this one is really more of a character advancement chapter.

I'll be thinking for the week until next week's episode, though. As always, let me know what you think and thanks for reading!

* * *

><p>"It's gone, Snowball. What are we going to do now? It's gone…"<p>

Sighing, Henry looked over at the wolf from his place sitting at the edge of the forest. His castle was gone. His book was gone. His secret with his mom was gone. His special place to meet her without the Mayor knowing was gone.

"How did she know, Snowball? How does she always know?"

The wolf, glancing at him with clear sympathy in his differently colored eyes, leaned over and licked the boy's face before laying his head back on his paws.

Henry stared out at the town before him, the occasional person walking by, the occasional car driving by. Storybrooke was relatively small. How was it so easy for the mayor to find these things out without them knowing? Henry had to figure it out.

Perhaps he would ask Graham. Whoever the Queen had spying for her, Graham would be better. He didn't know if it was magic seeping through the weakening barrier that was the curse, or the Huntsman's innate skill, but he could be anywhere and not be noticed. Henry had lost count of the times Graham had just seemingly appeared out of thin air. Thankfully, it worked on the Queen, too. She hadn't seen him since the day he'd come back to life.

"Hey, kid. How's it going?"

"Ahhh!" Henry jumped, looking up to see Graham smirking at him as he sat beside him. Point made once again…

"Sorry. I've been out in the forest since last night. I was checking on the dwarves. Emma said she was going to go see them today. Why so down?"

Shrugging, the boy put his head back in his hand and looked out over his town, "Bad day."

"Why? What's happened?" Graham looked down at the boy with concern. He obviously wasn't _his_ kid, but he cared. Even with the curse and an evil adopted mom and the responsibility of saving an entire town—albeit they didn't know it yet—on his shoulders, Henry was a cool kid. "Hey, if you don't want to tell me, you should let Emma know. She's always worried about you."

"She already knows. She went off to get the mayor back for it. See, the Queen tore down my castle and somebody stole my book." Sighing again, Henry continued, "I kinda wish she'd help me with my book instead of going after the Queen." He hadn't really gotten to see Emma a lot since just after the storm. It had kept the mayor busy for about a week, then she'd started cracking down on his activities once again.

"I'll go talk to her and see what she's got planned. You should go work on the story. Try and remember as much as you can." Graham smirked as Henry grasped onto the idea with a growing smile. He ruffled his hair before standing, "We can't have a narrator without a story. You should keep Snowball around with you."

The wolf yapped happily before licking Henry's face. The boy smiled, "Okay!" Scratching the wolf's head, Henry asked as Graham went back into the forest, disappearing almost immediately, "Do you feel like the diner? I'll order you a cheeseburger while I work." Snowball was up and trotting toward the street, tail wagging, before Henry could even get up.

* * *

><p>"So I heard about you and Henry's castle."<p>

Starting with surprise, Emma smiled as she turned, hand on her chest, "Do you enjoy sneaking up on me? Is that why you do it so often or am I just unobservant?" Despite her angry sheriff's tone, a smile spread across her face.

Smirking back and kissing her in a proper greeting, Graham replied, "Everyone is unobservant when I'm involved. Again, I'm sorry about the castle and Henry's book."

Sighing and leaning back in her desk chair, Emma nodded, "As bad as it is, I feel angrier about the castle than the lost book. Is that bad? I'm more worried about my time with Henry than saving everyone from a curse."

Graham laughed, kissing her on the cheek before perching on the corner of what was once his desk, "No, it just means you really love Henry. There's nothing wrong with that. I think he's more worried about the book, however."

Eyes narrowing, Emma commented threateningly, "Well, he won't have to worry about either once I expose her. I can't do things the fairy tale way and just take a sword to her, but I can expose her to the town and turn them against her."

"How exactly are you going to manage that…?" The danger in Emma's voice he could handle and understand. However, the plan sounded a little too underhanded for the Emma he'd fallen in love with. In fact, it sounded far too much like the Evil Queen's style.

"Sidney. She got him fired and now he's out for revenge. He's angry that she used him." At Graham's doubtful expression, she felt the need to explain herself further, "I figured the enemy of my enemy and whatnot." As his expression persisted, she laughed, "Hey, trust me. I'm supposed to be good at this reading people thing. He's on my side and I'm not going back to Mr. Gold."

Sighing, Graham said simply, "Please, just be careful. I don't know who he is, but the Queen has no equal when it comes to getting people to follow her orders without question. And intrigue is her forte. The curse was the most straightforward attack she ever made. I trust you, but please, just don't completely trust him yet."

Smiling as she stood, "I promise I won't trust him yet."

"Thank you."

"I have to go patrol for a while." Glancing back at him as she pulled on her coat, she asked, "Will you be around?"

"I'm not sure. I might have to check on something tonight." There was someone he suddenly needed to go see…

Though he could tell she was disappointed, Emma smiled, "Okay. I'll see you later." She reached up to lightly kiss him goodbye.

Before she could pull away, Graham pulled her into a hug and deepened it. When her eyes has fluttered open, dreamy smile on her face, he whispered without really thinking, "I love you, Emma."

"I love you, too."

Grinning, he kissed her once more before disappearing out the back door, leaving Emma there to realize what she'd just said. She knew it, she just hadn't actually, really, technically, _ever_ said it before. Smiling widely, she pulled her hat on. She was good with it.

Hiding in the shadows, Graham watched Emma get in her cruiser and pull away before disappearing back into the forest. He didn't know how long it would take, but he needed to find Maleficent. His knowledge of the Queen prior to his employment and subsequent imprisonment was rather sketchy. He'd been a bit too busy remaining as aloof from society as possible.

Maleficent would know who Sidney was. She'd know if he was really on their side. Given that his reasoning for trusting Maleficent was the same as Emma's for trusting Sidney, he was beginning to worry. He missed the straightforwardness of hunting with animals. There was no intrigue that involved playing with people's feelings. There were elements of surprise and trickery, but the intent was always straightforward.

He was hunting differently now. Now, he was hunting those hunting Emma. Maleficent was their best bet.


	6. Beneath the Surface

Hey there everyone. So, just like everyone else it seems, I kinda fell in love with Rumplestiltskin this last episode! Unlike most villains, I loved watching him in scenes since the beginning of the series, but now I must say he's one of my favorites.

So, as always, pretty please let me know what you think. I love hearing from people. Thanks for reading! :)

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><p>"I just don't understand. Gold is one of the calmest people around. I mean he's crazy and has no morals, but that's his thing: he's creepily calm." Sighing again, Emma let her head drop back on Graham's shoulder.<p>

She honestly didn't understand. She'd retrieved Gold's stolen items, at least apparently most of them, yet he was still after the guy's blood. At danger of using an animal metaphor like Graham did so often, Gold was usually a fox not a bear. He laid quietly in wait for things; going full force at someone was not his style. However, that was exactly what he was doing with Mo French. She didn't know if the poor florist actually had a vendetta or if he was just caught up in a bad way with the pawn broker. And a lack of knowledge that was far worse was that she had no idea where French was.

Whether the guy was just a burglar or something more, she didn't care. She'd arrest him when she found him. However, if she didn't find him soon it was looking like Gold would do something far worse than arrest him.

Emma couldn't explain why, but she felt oddly sorry for Mr. Gold. She didn't know why and she hated the feeling, but this intuition she had about people had morphed into a pang when Gold had spoken to her. Despite the surface materialism the man had, she got the feeling whatever French had taken was far more important to Gold than its worth in money.

Well, she certainly knew how to waste a perfectly good happy holiday. She was spending her Valentine's Day worrying about Gold—Rumplestiltskin, whatever—when she should be being happy about the fact Graham was still alive and with her…

Feeling his kiss on the top of her head, she looked up at her boyfriend, "What do you think?"

"I think you're right about Rumplestiltskin. French took something more valuable than money. That was always the thing with Rumplestiltskin; he could make his own money so any cost he asked for was always far more valuable. Generally he took it from other people, though. He didn't have anyone he loved. I don't know what would be important except his name, but how would French know that?"

Graham returned his gaze apologetically. He just didn't know enough about the fairy tale villain to help. He didn't even know if it had anything to do with that world…

"I wish I could ask Henry…"

Graham immediately understood what that meant and it had nothing to do with Gold, not really. Emma hadn't been able to see Henry from a distance of closer than about fifty feet in three weeks. Regina could say what she liked, but no woman who didn't consider herself a mother missed a kid that much.

Hugging her tightly to him, he whispered, "Regina can't keep him away forever."

"It sure as hell feels like it." Putting her brave front and stocking hat back on seamlessly, she stood and declared, "Well, I'm gonna go try and find French again. Do you want to come, oh mighty hunter of mine?"

Smiling, he shrugged, "I might as well make sure you don't get yourself lost and your life threatened by a bunch of dwarves."

"Hey, that was entirely _your_ dog's fault!"

"Wolf. Don't pick on Snowball when he isn't here to defend himself. Now do you want to find French or not?"

Emma rolled her eyes in answer as she pulled on her coat and him in for a kiss, "Love you, too, honey." Giving her his adorably ornery grin after coming up for air, he held her to him a moment longer than needed.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Emma."

* * *

><p>"Ow!" Henry frowned in frustration as he pushed himself up after tripping over yet another root. He bet that didn't happen to Graham… Reading his mind as always, Snowball offered an encouraging yip and lick to the face. Managing a smile, Henry scratched the canine behind the ears and trudged on.<p>

Perhaps, on second thought, making his way to Maleficent's in the middle of the night wasn't the best plan.

"Oh well, I'm not going back now," he declared to himself as he followed the white beacon that was Snowball's tail in the light of his flashlight.

"Are we talking to ourselves now, narrator?"

Henry froze at the disturbingly silky voice that he recognized immediately. Looking to his right he saw what he'd come to the forest to find in the first place. However, Maleficent's ramshackle hut was looking decidedly more…magical. He couldn't explain how; it just did.

"What can I do for you this fine night, narrator?" Her cloak now a dark burgundy in the faint light, Maleficent stood in her doorway, smiling at him.

Swallowing and straightening up, Henry replied, "I wondered if we could talk fairy tales for a bit."

"Of course. I do love spending time with you, Henry. Do come in." She gestured back into her home and held the door open.

"Come on, Snowball." The wolf trotted forward first, coming to sit at the sorceress's feet, not quite growling but his tail flicking with a threatening sort of nonchalance. Henry had never feared Snowball, but he could pick up no small amount of tension in Maleficent's eyes. She tried to hide it in her smile, but he noticed. The boy suddenly wondered if the Huntsman and his companion weren't more powerful than any of them thought…

Filing that observation away for another time, he entered the house and immediately sat down in what had become his favorite chair. It was in a corner where he could sit with his back to both walls and the fire across the way. Making no comment on his seating choice other than an amused smile, Maleficent lay upon her chaise and began to drink her ever-present glass of red wine.

"So, what has caused this bit of naughty behavior tonight, Henry? I can't imagine your dear mother would approve if she knew you were sneaking into the forest at night."

"The Evil Queen isn't my mom, so I don't care," Henry promptly replied. Before she could comment on that, he pressed on, "I was wondering, what all do you know about the Beast?"

Taking a deep sip, the blonde frowned, "Which one? There are plenty of beasts in the Enchanted world: wolves, bears, trolls, ogres. You name it; we've got it."

"No, no, not a beast. I mean _the_ Beast. The one with Belle and the castle and the forbidden rose and all that."

"Oh, that one," she replied, a look of absent annoyance on her face. "Disney butchered that one horribly. Though, I must say, there is a certain amount of irony in it, too." At Henry's perplexed expression, she giggled, "I apologize, I'm rambling. The Beast was—_is,_ I suppose—a bit of a misnomer. The Beast, as your tales name him, is Rumplestiltskin. For whatever reason, that connection was lost and only Belle was remembered as she truly was. Foolish girl…"

His suspicions bearing unexpectedly accurate fruit, Henry leaned forward in anticipation. He knew that when the Evil Queen had said she'd received the chipped cup it had to mean Beauty and the Beast! Chip had been his favorite part of the movie. "What happened? How else is the fairy tale different? What happened to them?"

"Your precious mother happened, that's what," Maleficent spat with more venom than was usual for her. "Oh, you should've heard her. She was quite pleased with herself and what she'd done. I don't know how, but she got Rumplestiltskin to kick the foolish girl out. He'd made a deal with her kingdom, you see. He got her as a maid forever and he guaranteed the safety of her people. It was rather straightforward for him, really. I think Belle was a bit more than he bargained for, though. She didn't cower in fear every time they were in the same room…it's nice when that happens…upon occasion."

Henry wondered who Maleficent had loved…

Shaking slightly and taking another drought of wine, Maleficent went on, "For whatever idiotic reason, the two fell in love like a pair of loons. The Queen came upon Belle on the road one day and immediately knew who she was. She'd always been looking for a source of power over Rumplestiltskin and Belle was it. The very same day, Rumpy threw her in the dungeon again and within the week he'd thrown her out."

Henry's eyes widened with comprehension, "Then the queen got her."

"Yes. The Queen took her, but not before letting Belle come home to find everyone believing she was tainted by evil. They shunned her and her father shut her up in a tower. She was heartbroken and hated—perfect for manipulating. Evi pretended to be on her side again, broke her out of the tower, made it look like she killed herself, and shut Belle up in her own dungeon. Evi wouldn't stop talking about how incredibly smart she was for days."

Twirling the now empty glass between her fingers, she added, "It was really quite insufferable. As far as I know, Belle was still down there, muttering about libraries and chipped cups, when the curse was released." Smiling widely once more, she queried, "Does that answer your question, narrator?"

"Yes, thanks, Maleficent."

As Henry stood to leave and followed Snowball to the door, she rose as well, "Visit anytime, Henry. I do adore our talks. Tell Emma hello for me."

Forcing on a smile and himself to walk and not run, Henry left, wondering with slight panic how she knew Emma's name.

* * *

><p>"You sure I can't interest you in this sandwich?" Emma asked once more, holding her lunch up for the man to see. Gold looked up at her with a glare that she knew could hold a lot more venom than it had at that moment. As a fellow burrier of the heart, she got the eerie feeling she was looking at a kindred soul in him.<p>

Of course, he was a fairy tale villain who had the tendency to delight in others' misery while she was just a sheriff who felt in over her head quite often. But, what was a girl to do?

"Sheriff, I promise you, when I ask for that favor it will be worth _far_ more than a sandwich." Emma could practically feel the threat in his statement.

"Nobody doubts you there, Gold. No need to sound so broody."

Sly smile appearing on his face, Emma's prisoner bit back, "You're one to talk, sher…well, I guess I can't refer to you as sheriff anymore now can I? I must say, it's nice to see you…alive. How is that exactly?"

Graham shook his head, "No, you can't call me sheriff. Hello, Emma." She returned the greeting before rising and giving him a kiss hello. The couple sat down at her desk.

Gold tried to appear uninterested sitting there in his cell as they talked in hushed tones. He did not get much but the two words he did hear froze him in place: Maleficent and Belle.

Glancing at their guest, Emma asked in a whisper, "So did you find out what you wanted to last night? What's Rumple's deal?"

"Yes, I went to see Henry." Noting the way her gray eyes flashed with hurt, worry, and anticipation all at the same time, he smiled, "He said to tell you he misses you and hopes that what he found out will help. Also, Snowball sends a happy lick. He and Henry have been having a grand time, apparently."

Smiling at the mental picture of her son and the excitable white wolf, Emma questioned further, "What did he find out? And how did he do it without his book?"

"You're not going to like it…" Graham began. His hesitancy was killed at the fierce look on his girlfriend's face, however. "While Regina was asleep he went to see Maleficent."

"He what?"

Shushing her, Graham continued, "He saw the whole incident with Gold and the florist's truck and he's been eavesdropping on Regina. She called someone last night, extremely happy because you'd arrested Gold and French had given her what she'd wanted. So early this morning he went to find Maleficent."

"But didn't you say you couldn't find her house like normal? It moves around or something. That's why it took you two weeks last time."

Graham shrugged, "We aren't sure because she'd not telling, but we figure that with the curse weakening she's getting some of her magic back. She's always had enough to keep the place concealed otherwise Regina would've killed her years ago. Now, we think she's gotten enough to move it around as much as she wants. When she feels we're looking for her, she makes herself available."

Pushing her sandwich away, suddenly quite the opposite of hungry, Emma frowned, "That does not make me feel any better."

"Better her getting her power back than Regina. Henry found some things out for us. I was wrong. Rumplestiltskin had someone he loved. He was in love with Belle."

The loud clatter of Gold's cane made Emma jump and Graham pivot impossibly fast to look at him. Gold was unable to collect himself quickly enough to keep the clearly lovelorn look off his face. Before he could come up with anything to say, the door to the police station closed with a thud. An ominous clicking of heels followed.

Faster than was faster for a normal, non-huntsman human being, Graham disappeared into the shadows of Emma's office. Casting a final worried glance in his direction, Emma rose and came to the doorway of her office. "Hi there, mayor."

"Sheriff Swan, I would like to speak to Mr. Gold in private. Just this once, I'm allowing you to see Henry. Take him out for ice cream or something. You have half an hour."

Stunned into inaction, Emma frowned, "You want me to leave you alone with a prisoner?"

"Twenty-nine minutes and thirty seconds, Miss Swan. Take it or leave it." Not needing anymore persuading, Emma grabbed her coat and hurried out with her son. Graham was there. Nothing truly bad would go down…

"Well," began Mr. Gold, again in full control of himself, "you really wanted that little chat, didn't you."

"Apparently this was the only way I could get it," Regina countered. Watching from the darkness, Graham was suddenly reminded of two wolves circling each other prior to a fight.

Despite her innocently sweet smile, Gold's eyes had narrowed at her. "Please," he said equally sweetly, "_Sit._" Smile disappearing, Regina did as he ordered. "Now, when two people have what one another want, a deal can always be struck." Gold's true emotion began to seep through with his next words, "Do you have what I want?"

"Yes."

Hope fundamentally contradictory to Gold appeared on his face, "So, you did put him up to it then."

With a smug satisfaction Graham knew all too well, she answered, "I may have suggested that strong men take what they need."

"Oh yeah, you told him exactly what to take, didn't you."

Smiling again, Regina commented, "We used to know each other so well, Mr. Gold. Has it really come down to this?"

Anger rising, he countered, "It seems it has, yeah. But you know what I want. What is it you want?"

"I want you to answer one question, and I want you to answer it simply." Graham could hear the change for the sinister in her voice. "What is your name?"

"Why, it's Mr. Gold."

The tone became darker, "Your real name."

"Every moment I've spent on this earth, that has been my name," he insisted.

"But what about moments spent elsewhere?"

"What are you asking me?"

"Oh, I think you know." Gold looked pained as she continued on, "If you want me to return to you what is yours, .."

"Rumplestiltskin." The tension Graham saw take hold of her indicated that she had been wishing but dreading that answer. The menacing way the man before her stood and leaned forward could be doing nothing for her blood pressure. "Now give me what's mine!"

"Such hostility…over this?" She daintily held up a chipped white teacup with blue flowers.

"Oh yeah," Gold replied, looking like he wanted nothing more than to reach through the bars and strangle the woman.

"Such a sentimental keepsake," Regina mocked as she held it just out of his reach. She recoiled however as he snatched it away and sat back down.

"So now that we're being honest with each other, don't let the bars fool you, dearie. I'm the one with the real power and I'll be out of here in no time and everything will be back to how it was before, Your Majesty."

Eyes narrowing, she glared at him through the bars, "We shall see." Ominous clicking following her straight out the door, Regina fled back outside to her domain.

Emerging from the shadows, Graham came to stand before the bars himself. Rumplestiltskin looked at him with clear disdain for a moment, before beginning to rub little circles on the cup with his thumb again, ignoring the man.

"True love's kiss."

Gold froze, "What?"

"I'm alive because of true love's kiss. I'm alive because Emma loves me," Graham commented as he pulled the unused deputy's chair up and sat.

Looking up from his cup, Gold nodded, "You certainly wouldn't be if Regina had her way. You've proven lucky in that respect, Huntsman."

"Haven't we both. You'd be right there with me if she had her way."

Smirking at that, Gold nodded, "That I well know. You were rather annoying to keep from killing me in my sleep when she was in bad moods."

Passing Gold a doughnut through the bars, Graham shrugged, "Those were good nights for me; I wasn't with her." Deciding that a low blow might just be necessary as Gold snorted at that, Graham continued, "At least that wasn't while Belle was with you."

In a disturbing turn of events that Graham had honestly never wanted to contemplate, he felt his heart go out to Rumplestiltskin. The even slight chance that Emma might ever be gone sent his heart to place he did not want it to go. He couldn't imagine Emma being taken from him like Gold believed Belle had been.

Taking in an uncomfortably emotional breath, Gold nodded, "Indeed. What is your point, Huntsman? You and Swan aren't the types to torture a person, so get to the point."

"I remember my other life just as you do. I don't know what the Queen told you, but Belle isn't dead. She was being kept in the Queen's dungeon from the time she imprisoned me until the time of the curse. She wasn't happy, certainly, but she wasn't dead." The pure and unequivocal hope that rose in Gold's eyes was almost painful for Graham. "I don't know where she is here, though."

Breath catching, Gold shook his head numbly, "It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. If she was alive there, she's alive here. I just have to find…Belle."

"What will you do when you find her?"

Gold looked at him slyly, "What do you think, Huntsman? I'll tell her I'm sorry and tell her I love her. Why do you ask if you know the answer?"

"To be sure. Your capacity for kindness was not exactly renowned as far as I remember. It's one of those things I had to make sure for myself." Shrugging, Gold nodded that he understood, so he continued, "I'll find her for you."

Frowning, Gold observed Graham for a long moment before smiling, "What do you want in return?"

"If I find you Belle, then the favor Emma owes you will be void. No classic Rumplestiltskin, no underhanded deals, no claims after the fact, no—"

"Deal. If you find me my Belle, Emma owes me nothing." He reached his hand through the bars, "Do we have an accord, Huntsman?"

He clasped the villain's hand firmly, "Aye." They exchanged a long look and by the time their hands fell back, both knew that if the other did anything to even slightly harm his beloved, his head would end up on a pike. As Graham retreated back into Emma's office, Rumplestiltskin's attention went entirely back to the cup in his hands, cherishing its proximity as he hadn't with the woman it signified.

Things would be different, just as he was.

* * *

><p>The Evil Queen looked through the tiny window in the plated door. The brunette before her was a ghost of what she had been that day they'd met on the road.<p>

"Perfect," Regina thought to herself. Belle was ten times more powerful than anything she could ever find on Rumplestiltskin. He had no reputation to protect; no ambitions to guard. No, as the disgusting love she'd seen staring at her as she dangled that abominable teacup before him had shown, he wanted nothing but a second chance.

As long as she kept that chance locked up down here, she had no need to fear it. She slammed the little window shut with satisfaction.

Belle glanced back at the door, not really seeing it, not really caring. Pushing her hair back behind her ear, she glanced down at her light blue hospital gown, yearning without knowing why for a dress far bluer and with red trim.

She didn't remember much, the darkness had squashed what she knew of her life in Storybrooke, but a the few things she did remember, she knew for certain. Her name was Belle. She was a princess. She was loved. And she ached for a man who glittered and called her dearie.

As the light coming through her window brightened with the momentary passing of a cloud, she opened up her clenched fist. Smiling with half a memory of why she needed it so much, she gazed lovingly at the chip of white and blue porcelain.


	7. Irreplaceable

Hello there everyone. So, even after a while to think about it, I really couldn't come up with much to do for this episode. I already miss Belle and Gold, though. :) So, I've just got some Graham and Emma stuff at the moment that is kind of pointless, but makes me happy inside. Let me know what you think and thanks for reading! :)

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><p>"Where's she off to at eleven at night?" Graham asked drowsily, the careful closing of Mary Margret's front door not quite quiet enough.<p>

Groaning from where she had made his chest into a pillow, Emma muttered, "To see David. Where else?"

"Why doesn't he just leave his wife? It's just…" he trailed off, trying to find the right word for the clandestine tendency Charming and Snow's relationship had taken.

"Rude? Yeah, I know, but he's too scared of hurting Katherine's feelings. It's kind of a refreshing change for a married guy seeing another woman, all things considered."

Kissing her forehead, he commented, "Words of experience?"

"All I know is that unless they're raised by wolves, men are freaking pigs," Emma said, trying to keep the worst of her irritation from her tone…it didn't work very well.

"Glad you approve of me, at least," he teased, successfully cheering her up after a nice long kiss.

Smirking up at him in the dim light, she replied, "Snowball does good work."

* * *

><p>"Good luck with the writer," Graham offered, kissing Emma goodbye the next morning.<p>

"Thanks," she commented wryly, "Let's hope his sense of humor grows on me. He's got it in his head that I owe him a drink." The guy was interesting, but he was a bit too flirty for her. In Boston, she would've loved the guy. Flirty guys were easier to get information out of. Now, it was just uncomfortable.

Smirking, trusting her implicitly, he replied, "I'm sure you'll be fine. If not, I'll find a way to kill him."

Emma laughed, "I promise you won't have to. Good luck to you with the Belle mission. Has Henry been able to shed any light on the subject for you?"

"No, not yet. He's not having any better luck with figuring out what she'd use for a dungeon here than we are. He's fine but missing you terribly, by the way." He kissed her on the cheek one last time, knowing that was what she'd been really asking, before shrugging hi coat fully on.

"Graham…"

He looked back at her, confusion at her hesitancy in his blue eyes.

"I'm glad we're not like Mary Margret and David. I'm glad I didn't lose you."

Bringing her to him and pressing their foreheads together, he replied quietly, "So am I, love."


	8. A Dream is a Wish

So, the writers aren't really giving me much to work with here lately. They're doing an annoyingly good/sinister job! I don't want to jump the gun on any big stuff yet, so I'm kinda hanging back at the moment, adding more details than main stuff, for which I apologize.

Anyway, pretty please let me know what you think and thanks so much for reading! :)

* * *

><p>"Explain to me why you're coming into town one more time."<p>

Emma frowned as she trudged through the muddy forest next to Grumpy. Graham had let her know early that morning that the dwarves wanted to see her. With surprisingly good navigation—something she was quite proud of—she'd found their home with little problem. She'd knocked on the door, been greeted with hugs all around, and then found Grumpy looking up at her with a grin and twinkle in his eye that were decidedly _not_ grumpy.

Smirking, Sneezy cut off his brother before he could explain, "He wants to see if he can—_sneeze_—find Nova. That's the real—_sneeze_—reason."

"Who's Nova?" The way Grumpy had frowned menacingly and blushed simultaneously made Emma smile.

"I'm not going to see..._her_. I'm going to help Snow. From what you've said she's having a hard time of it in town."

"Sure—_sneeze_—keep telling yourself that, Dreamy. Take care of Snow for us." Sneezy stopped then, turning to go back to their house.

Smiling knowingly at the silence that fell between them, Emma let Grumpy have his moment to remain in silence. He was practically radiating discomfort at that point. But, finally, she couldn't keep it in. He glanced over at her, noticing the growing grin there. Growling with irritation, he rolled his eyes, "Go ahead, Emma."

"Is she the fairy? The one you fell in love with?"

"Nothing gets past you, does it?"

Ignoring his acerbic reply, she merely said, "I hope you find her."

* * *

><p>"Any luck with Katherine?"<p>

Emma shook her head as she dropped her sheriff's badge onto the island in Mary Margaret's kitchen. Pouring herself a bowl of cereal for supper, she answered Graham's question, "No, not really. Sydney gave me her phone records, but I…I just can't believe that they're right."

Snorting derisively at the mention of the queen's little puppy, he shrugged, "They probably aren't. All his sources are her, anyway."

"You sure?"

He leveled a flat stare at her, clearly indicating that he was. Sydney wasn't evil without help, and he found all that he needed in the Evil Queen. He wished the guy would go back to his mirror.

Sighing, pondering what next to do—should she talk to David again, or find some other avenue and risk the mayor's removal of her—she queried, "How's the search for Belle going?"

Then, it was Graham's turn to sigh, "Nothing yet. If she were out in the forest, I would've found her by now. That means the Queen is hiding her somewhere in town. I can't sneak around the way I need to in town, nearly as well as I could out there. Henry's helping me out, though."

Another round of sighs began. Suddenly chuckling grimly, Emma smiled up at him, "We really need to catch some breaks in our cases or we're going to be the most depressed heroes ever."

He smirked back at her, "At least we've got each other and all that."

Smiling truly then, she reached over and took a drink of his coffee, "True…At least Grumpy is getting his dream, right? One person at a time…"


	9. Red Letter Day

Why hello there everyone! So, I was very happy with myself. Ruby got lots of ideas whirling in my head and this is over 1000 words. Hooray!

On another note, I'm gone for spring break next week and have no internet at home. So, in two weeks, I'll be back and I'll try and get two chapters up for the two episodes that will have aired. Anyway, let me know what you think and thanks for reading! :)

* * *

><p>"OH MY GOD!"<p>

Emma and Henry both jumped as Ruby let out an earsplitting scream. Snowball whined from his place beside Henry, her shrill tones hurting him far more than the two humans.

"What is that?" she continued, pointing with clear terror at the wolf that had just entered the sheriff's station.

Holding out her hands in a placating gesture, Emma tried to calm her friend, "It's nothing that will hurt you."

Frowning, Henry shrugged, "It's Snowball. He's my friend." Snowball yapped once happily to corroborate the statement.

Still shaking, Ruby questioned, "What on earth is it doing here?"

"He goes everywhere with me. He just stays outside when I go into Granny's. Why are you here anyway?" The boy's subject change was successful and the former waitress calmed considerably, though still throwing a multitude of worried glances at the canine.

"I was hoping I could use your computer…"

"Sure!" he replied immediately, taking her hand and sitting them down at the unused deputy's desk he'd claimed as his own. Snowball trotted along behind, keeping a bit of distance for Ruby's sake.

Smiling at the two, Emma commented as she unlocked the desk drawer concealing the book, "I'm going to go make a round. I'll be back in a bit. Stay out of trouble."

"Bye mom," Henry called after her, making the sheriff smile happily. He'd been able to sneak out to see her a lot more lately and it was doing them both good. Smiling down at his best friend, Henry was thankful that Graham had let Snowball stay with him. With his only social interaction with his mom and the Huntsman involving lots of stealth, it was nice to have a friend with him all the time.

"So, Ruby," he began, "why are you afraid of dogs?" He knew full well—he'd read about Little Red Riding Hood forever ago—but he'd do what he could to wake up her memories. He knew they weren't the best ones of any fairy tale character, but Red was strong. She'd find her way through it, just like she had in the Enchanted Land. People always underestimated how strong Red was, but he wouldn't.

She sent another cornered glance down at the dog. Ruby couldn't explain why, but for some reason the wolf put her on edge. Just looking at him made her feel funny, especially his red eye. Her hearing got strange; everything sounded amplified. She swore she could hear their hearts beating. The worst was her nose. She suddenly wondered if she was going crazy. She could smell Emma from there to the door and could tell where she'd walked like there was a little red path in her vision to follow.

She really couldn't do anything right, could she? She couldn't even be boring and normal correctly.

Finally pulling herself from her thoughts, she turned to Henry, "I don't know. Wolves just freak me out, I guess. I've never seen one in person before."

"Snowball's really nice, though. Here, you can pet him if you want." The wolf stood up immediately, tongue lolling out in the most unthreatening way he could manage. "He's really nice. He's Graham's, you know."

Deciding to trust the boy, Ruby slowly held out her hand. Snowball closed the distance for her, leaning into her hand and giving her wrist a lick in greeting. Smiling slightly, she began rubbing him behind the ears, "Well, maybe he's not so bad. I don't know, in stories the wolves are always really evil, you know?"

Henry nodded, keeping his voice level, "Yeah, I think they get a bad rep. It's only the magical wolves that are bad, the ones that used to be humans. Even then, I think it's the magic that's bad, not the people. Like werewolves, they can't help what they do when the magic is on them."

Ruby didn't speak. She remained petting Snowball in a slow, repetitive motion, but Henry could see an odd sort of comprehension in her eyes.

"Oh!" he exclaimed with sudden excitement, "Did you know that people killed by werewolves come back as normal ones?"

"Huh?"

"Yeah, the victims of werewolves don't die; they just get born as a regular wolf somewhere. I think it's the magic's way of giving them back the time that got stolen from them. So, what do you need with the computer?"

For a long moment, Ruby just smiled. She couldn't understand why, but Henry's last bit of knowledge made her feel warm inside. It shouldn't have mattered, seeing that werewolves weren't even real, but…still it made her feel better, better than in a long time. Finally turning to an also smiling Henry, she began, "Well, I need to find a job…"

* * *

><p>Emma took another deep breath through her mouth, not trusting her sense of smell not to make her pass out at that moment. Ruby had already run from the room long ago, covering both her mouth and nose. When she'd handed the box over to the sheriff, she'd been almost straight up green. Emma had to give her serious props for making it all the back into town if it was giving her that much trouble.<p>

She'd recognized the box immediately after Ruby had brought it into the station. She'd seen enough of those boxes to last her a lifetime—a normal and alternate universe life. She knew the question wasn't what was in the box; it was whose heart had the Queen taken out of her hiding place? Also, where was this other hiding place? She'd taken care of all of them in the big vault.

Apparently, removing the hearts from a vault made them turn normal again. Sitting at her desk, staring at the damned box before her, Emma waited. Graham would come over to go home with her as he always did. She needed his opinion.

It was painfully clear to her what was happening. Mayor Evil was trying to frame David and Mary Margaret both for the murder of Katherine, despite the fact that Katherine likely wasn't even dead. Knowing the mayor, the poor woman was locked up somewhere. David's sudden memory loss and the fingerprints on the inside of the box were entirely mayor's fault, Emma just knew it.

Now, how did she prove it without losing her job? She needed leverage of some kind… Sighing, Emma closed her eyes and laid her head back in frustration. Her job was beginning to involve far too much intrigue for her comfort.

"Hey Emma, what's got you looking so…What the hell is that doing here?" Graham took one look at the box on his girlfriend's desk and froze.

He _hated_ those boxes…

"Ruby found it by the toll bridge this afternoon."

"Is it full?" He looked from the container to Emma rapidly a few times. She simply nodded. "Whose?"

"I have no idea. But she planted Mary Margaret's fingerprints on it. What am I supposed to do?"

Sitting down heavily in the chair before her desk, he continued to stare at it, "You wipe the fingerprints off and get tests run on the heart." Knowing the hesitant look she was giving him without needing to see it, he pressed on, "Ethics laws are for people not under a curse and not going up against the Evil Queen. We both know she planted them; we're wiping them off."

Nodding, Emma sighed once more, "She can't get us in trouble for it if she wasn't supposed to know they were there in the first place. How do we explain away David? She put him under something."

"I can talk to Gold. Although, I don't know how helpful he's going to be. I need to find Belle."

"For everyone's sake, not just her and Gold's now," Emma agreed. "I'll work on holding off Mayor Evil and you and Henry work on searching for Belle. I'll buy you guys the time. I might have to arrest David for the time being, though."

Standing up, Graham nodded, "It'll keep him safe, at least. I've got to go." He gave her a sound kiss before leaving through the back door and disappearing with unnatural skill into the darkness.

Gaze going back to the box, Emma glared at it, "When this is all over, box. We're going to have a little date with a bonfire of some kind."

* * *

><p>"Ruby can help us!"<p>

Graham looked at the boy with skepticism. He'd met him at the edge of the forest on their usual random night of the week and told the boy of their renewed mission. How in the name of magic did Henry come up with her? On top of that, Snowball gave a yap of agreement.

Looking between the two, Graham frowned with confusion, "How?"

"Because she's got wolf senses. Between her and Snowball, we should be able to find Belle in no time. Plus, Ruby will be easier to get into buildings in town."

"How do you know she's got wolf senses?"

Henry shrugged, "She used to be a werewolf, though she's better now, of course. The red in her hair keeps anything from happening, plus she kind of worked through all of it before. Come on, I can get her to help us. We just have to ask Mr. Gold for something that was hers so they can track it." Though still far from sure about the situation, Graham suddenly felt like an idiot. Why hadn't he thought of that?

* * *

><p>"I don't know about this Henry…" Ruby looked at him unsurely. He wanted her to help him find some woman named Belle with Snowball. Plus, she was still reeling from seeing Graham again. The rumor had been that he'd died, then magically woken up the next morning in the morgue and walked out of the hospital, leaving town the same day. No one had mentioned seeing him since. Apparently, he hadn't quite left town…<p>

Henry interrupted her thoughts and doubts, "You were so amazing at finding stuff this afternoon, I thought you could help."

"You were so awesome at finding stuff this afternoon, I thought you could help. You're great at finding things."

Ruby was scared to admit to him that she'd found that heart box with half luck and half that odd red ribbon in her vision. It was strange; it was like the ribbon thought for itself. It was a weird combination of what she smelled around her, heard, and what her head knew. At her continued hesitance, Henry held out an old, dried rose petal. "Here, this is from the house where she used to live. Her dad is that florist, Mr. French."

Snowball sidled up between them and stuck his nose into Henry's hand. The scent wafted up toward Ruby, too and the red ribbon began swirling about in her head. Snowball touched his cold nose to her wrist and they shared a long look. Suddenly Ruby nodded, "Okay."

Hand resting atop Snowball's head, she and the canine led the way away from the old playground castle the mayor had torn down. At first, she vaguely noted Henry and Graham talking to her, but none of it quite reached her. She was aware of two things and two things only: Snowball's warm, soft fur beneath her fingers and the red ribbon showing her the way.

Within fifteen minutes, the four found themselves outside one of the main doors to the hospital. Cocking her head to the side, Ruby stated, "Belle is in there."

Graham looked down at Henry, "Snowball and I will sneak in and meet up with you." Nodding, Henry stepped forward and took Ruby's hand. He wasn't sure why, perhaps part of him was scared of what they'd find, and part of him just knew that Ruby needed something to keep her grounded, too.

Looking over at him, the brunette grinned down at him, "Let's go." They walked through the doors like they had every right to be there, striding confidently past all the people. No one gave them a second glance as Ruby led him to the stairs.

At the bottom of the first flight, Graham and Snowball were waiting anxiously. Smiling at his apparent nervousness, Ruby commented, "Lighten up, sheriff. It'll be fine."

She continued in the lead, winding them through a maze of doors marked custodial and employees only, until they were before a final door, florescent light gleaming at them. Stopping suddenly, Ruby remarked, "There's someone in there."

"Who?"

She shrugged, "A nurse of some kind. Let's go."

The woman in white jumped at their appearance, apparently not receiving many visitors down there in her dungeon-like ward. Recovering almost immediately, however, she was on her feet and said with a dangerous sweetness, "I'm sorry, visiting hours are over. I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

Ignoring the woman's words, Ruby demanded, "Sit down!" Surprisingly, the woman did as Ruby ordered. Glaring at the easily cowed woman, she glanced back to her comrades. Henry was looking at her with a mixture of awe and excitement, while Graham's face radiated shock. "What?"

"Nothing." Henry grinned, she had totally just snarled at that lady. Snowball looked slightly in love as his tail wagged as he trotted beside her, much to Henry's amusement.

Exchanging a look, Henry and Graham followed their two trackers down a dark, adjacent hallway. Ruby stopped before one of the doors and looked through its slot. Smiling back at them triumphantly, she declared, "Belle is in here."


	10. Out of the Darkness

Hey there everyone! So, this is kind of the pinnacle of my writing that I completed over spring break. I was woefully busy, but I'm really rather proud of this. So, let me know what you think and thanks for reading! :D

Disclaimer: I don't own, I forget these too often, see profile, etc, etc, etc.

* * *

><p>Emma heaved a deep sigh as she flopped down in what had become her favorite chair in Mary Margaret's living room. It had been…well, it had been a hell of a last forty-eight hours. She bet she'd gone through twice as much in the last two days than most sheriffs did in their entire terms.<p>

* * *

><p>It had all started the night after Ruby had brought her the heart in the box. As she and Graham had agreed, she'd wiped down the box, knowing without a doubt that Regina was trying to frame Mary Margaret. After that, she'd bagged the heart and sent it by express mail to the forensic lab in Augusta. Even though she was just from little Storybrooke, she got the feeling her package would get their attention and she'd get a prompt answer as to DNA and all that good stuff. It would take still take longer than sending it to the closest town, but she was putting that evidence as far out of the reach of Mayor Evil as possible. She was taking no chances with Mary Margaret and incarceration.<p>

She'd barely had time to pick depressingly at her dinner at the diner before feeling her phone begin to go off in her pocket. Frowning down at it, putting her fork on her plate and pulling it out, she answered, "Hello?"

"EMMA! EMMA! EMMA, you'll never guess what happened!"

Emma was sure that even August—all the way across the diner by the front window—could hear Ruby's piercingly high pitch. Shuddering as she tried to regain some sensation in her ear, it took her a few minutes before she could reply.

"What happened?"

"We found Belle! We found Belle; she's in the basement of the hospital. We got her door open and she's really nice. I don't know why they think she's crazy. You'd like her. She's snarky like you. But, you have to come here with your badge and help us get her out. Henry says you should bring Mr. Gold. We'll hold down everything here. Graham and Snowball will make sure nothing happens to her until you guys get here. Plus," Emma heard a decidedly smug sort of smirk in Ruby's tone, "I don't think the nurse will be telling on us anytime soon…"

Not quite sure what that meant, Emma just replied, "I'll be right there."

She'd arrived outside the dimly lit exterior of Gold's pawnshop ten minutes later. She didn't know why, but she had the feeling he'd be there. It took only a few moments of pounding on the door before his usual self-serving grin opened the door. "Why hello, sheriff. What can I do for you?"

"You need to come with me," Emma replied.

"Now why ever would I _need_ to do that?"

Emma couldn't keep the slight smile off her face; call her a complete girl but even if it was Gold, she was glad that somebody was getting the beginnings of a happy ending. "Because you want to see Belle again."

At his awestruck look and lack of movement, she went on hurriedly, "Yes, I know all about the curse. Yes, I believe Henry. Yes, I'm dating the Huntsman and he tells me everything. Yes, when you're against Regina, I'm on your side. Yes, we need to go _now_." She grabbed him by the elbow and had to drag him the first few steps toward her cruiser. It didn't take much longer than that, though, before he was outpacing her.

"Sheriff, we just might be able to be friends." He'd sat himself down in the passenger seat before she could even get to her door.

With Gold nagging her to go faster like an old wife the entire way, Emma pulled into the back parking lot of the hospital within minutes. She tried and failed to feel guilty about likely breaking a few traffic laws. The safety of her friend/mom and the fate of the entire town quite possibly rode on Gold getting Belle back: she'd pay the fine for a speeding ticket later.

Once again, Gold beat her into the building. For having a gimp leg that guy could move. The positively driven glint in his eyes—an almost _gold_ one—gave her a glimpse at the evil trickster that had the power to rival the Evil Queen. She knew he'd never be on _her_ side-he was only ever on his—but she was glad that their sides were after the same goal at the moment.

Waving her badge at anyone and everyone who got in their way made quick work of any curious nurses and they soon found themselves in the dark, rather dank bowels of the Storybrooke hospital. Just as Ruby had implied, the nurse that was supposed to be guarding the entrance to the secret psych ward was crumpled in a corner, looking fearfully down the hall whenever Ruby's voice reached her.

Emma had the sudden urge to laugh. Not at the fact that the woman was scared of Ruby—the girl's angry, shrill tone was enough to scare anyone anyway—but that Ruby thought she was so useless. She set her mind to it and she could have full grown people cowering in a corner at the mere sound of her voice.

Gold took absolutely no notice of the woman aside from an angered glare. If he'd had more time and more of a motivation, he probably would've found a way to make her regret ever being born, but Emma was glad that he didn't appear to need to at that point.

They had just turned the last corner when the two of them heard a female voice that was decidedly not Ruby's. It was lower, quieter, and had the lilt of wit and some sort of accent. There was confusion in the voice, but determination as well. Yeah, Emma decided, she was going to like Belle.

Gold, however, froze in place. His breathing had quickened and he was as close to flustered as Emma had ever seen him. The only other time she'd seen him without perfect control was when he was beating a man over the head. That had been anger; this was something completely different. He seemed almost…_shy_.

He almost turned around, fearing the negative possibilities before him. She could hate him. She could have forgotten him. Or worse, she could remember him perfectly. She could remember all the horrible things he'd done to her. She could remember how he'd been a coward, how he'd thrown her out.

His brain—a brain tactical, conniving, ingenious, and perfect for keeping his interests at the forefront of everything—was screaming at him to run. He was miserable now, yes, but it wouldn't be anything different from what he'd been going through for years. He'd survive. He always did.

His heart—it never failed to amaze him that it had somehow survived through everything—was paralyzing his legs. He could almost hear it telling his brain to screw itself and shut up for once. It was tired of being miserable; it at least wanted a chance.

And so, he stood there, looking like a scared idiot as that voice—that wonderful, beautiful, amazing, _necessary_ voice—trailed off in mid-sentence. Her blues eyes found his and he felt like he'd been punched in the stomach. In the span of a few seconds, Belle's bright blue eyes had glanced his way, her train of thought had derailed, and he could practically see the puzzle pieces fit back together.

Belle remembered.

She took one step toward him, ignoring the smirking Henry and Ruby and the broody yet seemingly approving Graham. Her steps were shaky, but as it always had been with her, her words were not. Staring past the golden skin that he no longer sported, the bitingly snarky remarks straight into the soul she'd helped him find, she asked him one simple question.

"Are you still too scared?"

He shook his head, heart pounding so fiercely in his throat he didn't know how the words came out so clearly, "No, I'm not too scared. Never again _too_ scared, dearie."

He watched as she froze at the name he referred to everyone as, yet the name that had become a term of endearment when aimed at her. He didn't know the extent of what she remembered or how, but that single word seemed to cement all of it for her. Smiling as she shook her hair back of her shoulders to reveal the tears streaming down her face, Belle held out her hand. She opened it to reveal a small, slim chip of white and blue porcelain. Gold sucked in a breath at the sight of it.

She'd somehow managed to keep it.

"Never again, Rumple?" she queried, searching his face for some indication of being thrown to the wayside again, of her love being rejected once more.

"Never again," he replied firmly, shaking his head for emphasis.

It wasn't a proper apology, a normal apology, but Belle knew it as soon as he gave it. With no reason to hesitate a moment longer, she closed her hand around her chip and ran to him.

Emma had to fight the urge to laugh when the small brunette connected with Gold, throwing her arms around his neck and clinging to him. He stiffened for the first second, as if he wasn't used to such a hug in either of his lives, but the tension visibly left him. He melted around the woman in his arms, bringing the hand holding his cane around the small of her back and the other up to lose itself in her long, tangled hair. After a moment of simply holding her, Gold ran a hand down Belle's face, wiping a few tears away, before leaning down and hungrily kissing her. He wasn't wasting his second chance.

Ruby let out a shrill, happy squeal at the couple. Snowball wagged his tail at her feet.

Emma swore she heard him whisper "I love you, Belle" after a few moments. She also saw him and Graham exchanged a loaded glance. Graham nodded at its end; their accord had been fulfilled. When she found her Huntsman's blue eyes, his mouth spread into the ornery grin she loved so much.

And for that beautiful moment, they had once again won.

* * *

><p>Regina hadn't found out about Belle's discharge from the hospital until the next day.<p>

After the happily sobbing Belle had managed to detangle herself from Storybrooke's Rumplestiltskin, the group had made their way upstairs. Ruby, Henry, Snowball, and Graham had snuck away, their involvement no longer needing to be known, lest the Evil Queen take her anger out on them. Emma was initially worried about the nurse, but Ruby had bared her teeth at the woman with a smug grin and the woman turned to mush. Emma wondered if she would ever actually speak again.

She sent a questioning look at Henry, but he just winked at her happily. Ruby didn't quite understand everything yet. She'd been started on the path, though.

Emma, Gold, and Belle then made their way through the quiet hallways, nighttime making everything move slower. With every step upward they took, Belle's strength seemed to grow; her footsteps became steadier, and her grip on Gold's arm tightened.

Emma was happy for her. The woman had gotten her life back, despite everything Regina had thrown at her so far. And, she knew they were no Snow White and Prince Charming, but Emma could see the unwavering bond of love between the two before her. Gold would've likely begun plotting her death if she said it out loud, but Emma smiled at the thought that the dreaded Rumplestiltskin and the beautiful, intelligent Belle had a love worthy of tales.

They walked in silence, Emma and Gold both somehow knowing where they were going.

Mo French's recovery room came upon them quickly. Belle frowned at the door for a moment, "He's-He's my father, right?"

"Yes, dearie."

Belle swallowed and took a deep breath, though Emma didn't think it was from trying to muster up bravery. From the gleam in the woman's eyes, she figured they were attempts to calm herself. She had her memories back; she remembered exactly what her father had done to her in both her lives. After a moment, though, she gave Emma a bright smile, "Let's go talk to him…Why are we talking to him?"

Emma grasped the papers Gold had pulled out of his jacket pocket, "When all this started, he put you in here. It was the mayor's doing, but it'll be his signature that put you in here and it'll be his that gets you out. This is an admission that he wrongfully admitted you to the psych ward. I think Gold's probably had it and a couple dozen other possible forms ready since he got to Storybrooke." She smirked at the level glare he was shooting her.

Seeing his daughter up, about, and walking toward him had made Mo French's hand write very quickly. Emma hadn't even gotten through with explaining the document before he'd torn the pen from her grasp and signed it through his still battered face.

Passing Belle the document, Emma smiled at her, "You're a legal adult; you may go where you please, Miss French."

And so, Emma had driven a still snarky, yet decidedly less grouchy Mr. Gold and an ecstatic Belle to Gold's house in the darkness. When she'd stopped by the curb and opened the back door of the cruiser for them, she could only smile as Belle looked about her outdoor environment and began spinning with delight, her face to the sky and her arms out wide.

Gold stood beside her for a few moments, letting his beloved revel in her freedom. With a quiet, almost pained voice, he said, "Thank…you, Emma. Tell Graham and Henry I…thank them as well."

"Just keep her safe, Gold." With a parting wave to Belle, Emma had gotten back in her cruiser and driven home, curling up next to Graham with a smile and a sense of satisfaction that, coupled with the warmth of his arms around her, allowed her to fall into a deep, wonderful sleep.

Then, of course, Regina had found out the next morning as the rumor of the sheriff, Mr. Gold, and a strange girl from the psych ward made it around to the eyes and ears that she controlled.

Emma had chuckled as her work phone began to ring shrilly during her breakfast of stealing Graham's cereal and coffee the next morning. Holding up the caller ID for him to see, she commented, "I take it she knows."

He laughed with her. "I'll say that's a safe bet," he stated before pushing her still ringing phone down to the counter and kissing her soundly and deeply. When he pulled back, grinning at the pleasantly dazed expression on her face, he commented smugly, "You should answer that."

Making a face at him, Emma quipped, "Rude," before answering the infernally ringing technology.

Half an hour later, she was striding into the mayor's office, her badge and hands on her hips, "You summoned me, Ms. Mayor."

"Indeed," Regina replied, her voice as level as ever but with anger clearly bubbling beneath the surface to Emma's satisfaction. "You're not doing your job, Ms. Swan. I have a problem with this. We have a possible murder on our hands, with two possible suspects, and you're worrying about long-term mental patients. I think we need to get your priorities straightened out, sheriff."

"Well," Emma began nonchalantly, "first off, Belle has nothing wrong with her mental state, except for a bad case of cabin fever. As a citizen of this community, I have as much of a responsibility to her as to Katherine Nolan. Second, what are our two suspects for her disappearance? Who are they? Is there something you know that I don't, mayor?"

The mayor's expression turned sweet, a sure sign she had something irritating and evil up her sleeve, "How can you not know, sheriff? There is, of course, David Nolan. His alibi for the time of the crime is shaky and he was the last to see his wife before she disappeared. The second is, quite naturally, Mary Margaret Blanchard. She has motive, and this," she held up a picture of the heart box, "has been seen in her classroom. It's now missing. I want you to arrest her."

Emma's happiness had vanished. "You want me to arrest Mary Margaret on circumstantial evidence of a box and an unlikely motive? It had no fingerprints or anything else on it to indicate her. If it was in her classroom, anyone could have taken it. Even _you_, mayor."

"Don't be ridiculous, Miss Swan. It doesn't become you. Of course, I didn't take the box. No one will ever believe that…especially after this morning's paper. Sydney is the editor again, you know."

She tossed that morning's copy of the paper on her desk between them. Emma read the headline, "Local Love Triangle Turns Deadly." Mary Margaret and David's names were within the first few sentences and a picture of the heart box large on the front page. Her mouth opened in rage, "He can't print lies like these! And I am not arresting her because of a newspaper article."

"Sheriff," the mayor chastised, "I would never dream of arresting a woman on something so fickle. I just get the feeling you're going to begin getting witnesses that can attest to Mary Margaret's likely guilt in the case. As we've all seen, she's had to deal with public humiliation the last few weeks. Was it 'Tramp' that someone painted on her vehicle? Perhaps she'd finally had enough and decided to take out the root of all her pain."

With narrowed eyes, Emma replied, "We'll see."

No fewer than six people Emma had never seen or spoken to before appeared at the sheriff's office that day, claiming to have seen Mary Margaret driving out of town, walking outside of the Nolan home repeatedly, and a host of other ridiculous, incriminating things. Following lunch, before these people had arrived, the mayor had decided to set up shop in Emma's office. She ensured the new witnesses were questioned in intensive detail and all was written down meticulously.

By that night, Emma had had no choice but to arrest Mary Margaret, only for holding overnight. Emma couldn't get the look of pure betrayal on her friend/mother's face out of her mind as she settled down to sleep in her office that night, not wanting to leave her friend alone.

* * *

><p>The next day had only gotten more tiring after a night sitting upright, filled with guilt, as the mayor had arrived to gloat, the DNA results had returned, confirming that the heart was Katherine Nolan's, and David's upsetting visit that left Mary Margaret in tears.<p>

By the end of the day, Mr. Gold had provided the only bit of positive action. As Mary Margaret's new lawyer, he had found a beautifully forgotten bit of Storybrooke legislation, providing for his client's release, that Emma was only too happy to facilitate. With Henry's earlier revelation that Mayor Evil had keys that fit into _every_ lock in town, Emma suggested to her friend, "Mary Margaret, I-I know it sounds odd, but I think you should leave town for a while. I need to find the evidence that leads the case to the mayor, and if you're not around then she has one less vaguely plausible person to frame."

The teacher had nodded, tears still stinging her eyes at the course of her last twenty-four hours, "Okay. Where should I go?"

"Graham knows a place. We have some old friends of yours that have a spare room."

And so, Emma sat in an apartment she no longer felt truly safe in, waiting for Graham to come back from escorting Snow White back to the home of the seven dwarves. For better and _definitely_ worse, the past forty-eight hours had been tiring. Waiting for her love to come back and for the Evil Queen to decide her next plan of attack, Emma sat in as much comfort as she could.

Belle had been saved and Rumplestiltskin had been…appeased? Emma didn't quite know the right word for what they'd done for Gold. Perhaps 'saved' was an apt word for him, too, though he was just as shrewd as ever. That was good; they'd need it. Yet, Snow and Charming still seemed to be on a crash course for disaster…

Sprinkling some more cinnamon on her hot chocolate, Emma sighed once again, "One person at a time, Emma. One person at a time…"


	11. Madness with a Side of Hats

Soul...soul, is that you? Yay! College finally gave you back! I've missed you!

I'm so sorry about getting behind but my professors decided to assign stuff all at the same time it feels like. I'll try and get the next chapter up before the new episode on Sunday. Thanks for sticking with me and thanks for reading! :)

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><p>"What do you mean I have to bring Mary Margaret back? What kind of bullshit is this?"<p>

Emma wasn't prone to swearing when at work. It was one bit of professionalism she'd allowed to invade her person. She was too attached to her boots and leather coat to take on a uniform. She preferred her yellow bug to that boat of a cruiser, and the badge was as much as she was willing to take on.

However, Mayor Evil was definitely asking for it, standing there with her infuriating smirk. Emma fought the huge to slap it off her face. The woman was messing with her mother; Emma didn't care about the circumstances—the whole same age, not knowing her for the first twenty some years of her life, her being from an alternate world and whatnot—_nobody_ messed with her mother.

"Miss Swan, I'm—"

"_Sheriff_ Swan."

Regina's eyes narrowed the slightest bit at being interrupted before continuing, "Sheriff Swan, I have in my hand the subpoena summoning Miss Blanchard to a hearing tomorrow. Although Mr. Gold managed to weasel her out of a murder investigation, that does not mean that her involvement in Katherine's disappearance has vanished. A general hearing to get the facts will be held tomorrow at eight am and if she's not there, then she'll have a warrant instead of a subpoena with her name on it."

The woman smiled, red lips twisting up in a decidedly _not_ welcoming way, "It's already five o'clock, sheriff. You've only got tonight to find her. I suggest you best get started. Come along, Henry."

Emma's gray eyes narrowed in return as the other woman left, Henry trailing behind with worry painted clearly across his face. He knew as well as Emma what was happening. They both knew a set-up when they saw one. Regina apparently had the judge in her pocket—unsurprising—and had gotten him to start that whole subpoena thing. The point wasn't to get Mary Margaret back into town necessarily; no, it was to find out where she was hiding. Mayor Evil wanted to find out who else might remember and be a threat.

Emma wasn't about to let her get the upper hand, however. She'd decided that a long time ago. Snatching her jacket off her desk chair, she waited only moments after Regina's car had pulled away before getting into her own. Regina wouldn't follow her herself. She'd have someone else do it.

Emma's bet was on Sydney.

Little did Mayor Evil and her minion know that Emma had friends, too. Well, technically he was more than a friend, but she digressed. Using the beautiful technology of the cell phone—she really was glad she didn't have to communicate by pigeon or anything here—she called Graham.

He sounded busy, but gloriously happy to hear her voice as he always did. It made Emma feel like she was his light and she adored the feeling. "Emma."

"Graham, I need your help tonight, please."

She could hear the worry in his voice when he replied, "Of course, love. You sound upset. What's wrong?"

She ignored the nice little somersault her stomach did at his term of endearment, "The mayor subpoenaed Mary Margaret to a hearing in the morning. I know she's going to have Sydney or somebody follow me, so I'm just going to lead them on a goose chase if you can help get her from the dwarves' place back into town."

"I had to check on a unicorn today, so I'm close to there. I'll get her there. But, Emma…be careful."

She smiled as she turned onto a back road that led toward the forest and noticed a pair of headlights behind her, "I always am, dear. I love you."

"I love you, too, Emma."

Smile firmly planted on her face at the memory of Graham's voice and the adrenaline of the chase, she continued to drive through the increasing fog. "Oh my god!" She slammed on the brakes as she nearly clipped a man walking the side of the road. Quickly getting out of the car and running toward him, she prayed that he wasn't hurt. When he appeared to have a limp, with guilt invading her mind, she made a quick, simple decision. She wasn't really in a hurry; she felt compelled to help him.

"Here, let me drive you home…"

* * *

><p>"I don't know what you want me to do. I'm not a hatter; I don't make hats much less make them magical." Emma held the large hat out to him apologetically.<p>

"I want you to make it work! I WANT Grace BACK!"

Emma had had her share of staring down the barrels of guns. She never enjoyed it but it came with the territory. However, if she was ever to get truly antsy, it would be now. Crazy people and guns did not mix. Eying the weapon warily, she began, "Jefferson, I believe you, okay. I do. I know what a bitch the Queen is and I…I know what it is to be separated from your kid. I-I just don't know how to make the hat work. I don't know what part I have to play here aside from making that bitch's life as horrible as possible, but hats aren't my forte."

"But you can fix it!" There was clear desperation in Jefferson's voice.

Emma felt for him, but the way he was waving the gun before her was not aiding her sympathy… She jumped when his clock struck seven quite loudly. Eyes widening, she looked at him worriedly. She had to be at the station in an hour. She couldn't afford to be stuck here in the Mad Hatter's mansion.

Jefferson seemed to know exactly where her thoughts were going. Smirking, he gestured with the gun to the hat once again. "Clock's ticking. You want to save your mom, you get with the magicifying my hat."

"Then tell me how to…magicify it then!"

"You're the princess. You tell me." Dropping her head to the table, Emma groaned. This was getting her nowhere. She froze when she heard the gun prime. Jefferson's smile was still intact as he pointed it toward her. "Come on, princess."

"I'd put that down if I were you…"

Jefferson froze as Emma jumped at the sound of the voice she knew so well. Appearing from a shadow with impossible silence, Graham now had his knife against Jefferson's neck along the scar from his last encounter with a blade.

The hatter's voice sounded pained, "Huntsman."

"Hatter," There was clear danger in Graham's tone. "If you want to get home and get your daughter back, then killing the one woman that can get you there isn't a good idea, aye?"

"You make a compelling point…" Emma didn't know what it was, but there sounded as if there was clearly history between the two men. She assumed Graham had come out on top, whatever it was that had happened. It was enough to make Jefferson drop the gun on the table, glaring at Emma the entire time.

Graham pulled the knife back and immediately took a gentle grasp of Emma's arm, pulling her from the room, knife at the ready to throw. Looking at it sadly, Emma spun the hat in her fingers only once before tossing it back to the mad man before her. "Just wait for the curse to end and you'll have her back."

Graham didn't let their pace slacken until they were by the yellow bug Jefferson had hidden beneath a tarp in his driveway. He immediately pulled her into a tight hug, kissing the top of her head. Emma hugged him back before asking, "He's not going to wait, is he?"

Graham shook his head, "No. If you making it made the hat work, he's long gone by now. The Queen pushed him to his madness long ago. She'd made him lose Grace in our world, too."

Sighing, Emma looked down at her hands as she climbed into the passenger seat. "Graham," she began. He looked over at her with an amount of worry until he saw the small smile on her face, "I really can't sew." She held up her hands to reveal numerous needle pricks before laughing at the entire situation. Mad hatters, subpoenas, spies, and a magical hat.

Storybrooke was never boring, especially by way of near death…


	12. Stability

So, without any proper excuse whatsoever, I've been painfully busy and unmotivated. I apologize for how long it's taken me to get this done. I'm even more pathetic because I didn't come up with a whole bunch to do this episode. Everything that happened kind of felt like it needed to. Thank the writer heavens that Emma is finally beginning to come around in the show.

Given that I missed them, I decided to come and see Belle and Rumplestiltskin again. So, without further ado, thanks for reading, thanks so much for your reviews, and I hope you enjoy. :)

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><p>"What're you up to now, Rumple?" Belle smirked as she leaned over the back of his favorite reading chair in their living room.<p>

He said nothing, merely glancing up at her with a loving smirk before he looked back down at the legal document in his hands. Tilting her head to read it better, Belle found that it had to do with the case against Mary Margaret. Frowning, she looked from it to him a few times. Blue eyes narrowing merrily, she commented, "I know that look. What're you scheming up? What are you planning for her this time?"

Knowing exactly the 'her' of which Belle was referring, he merely smiled, "Whatever are you talking about, dearie?"

Coming around the front of the chair and pushing his feet to the side, she perched herself on his foot rest, and rested hers in his lap. She raised an eyebrow at him, "I'm talking about you, me, and our extreme…dislike of the Evil Queen. She called you yesterday. What does she want?"

She looked up at him expectantly, knowing he'd answer eventually. He always did. It had taken him about a month back in the enchanted world for him to inadvertently begin opening up to her. She'd purposely been low-key enough about asking about things that she doubted even his astute perception had noticed. Now that she thought back on it, she chalked it up to him being in love with her, just not quite realizing it.

Gold looked at her with a smile, allowing that self-serving part of himself to put up the illusion of a fight for itself. The rest of him just reveled in getting to stare completely shamelessly at her. He loved the way her eyes lit up when she was matching her wit against his. Also, he loved how when she asked him about his plots, she was never condemning, just curious. Her purpose in asking wasn't to judge the morality of it—he was pretty sure she'd accepted his for what it was—she just wanted to hear the cleverness of the plan.

"Well, dearie, she wants me on her side when it comes to Snow. I'm her lawyer, but Her Highness wants to ensure the object of her wrath goes down for everything."

Belle laughed, "She never did have a very good grasp of people, did she? Even after all this business with me, she still believes you're open for business to her."

Shrugging, he smirked at her astute assessment, "Power is the only currency she's willing to accept anymore. I'm supposed to be poor and soulless just like her, despite the fact she's pining for the man her mother stole from her."

Holding up her hand, Belle shuddered, "I don't want to know. Her heinous descent into evil can stay her affair. If you know it, you can exploit it." Shifting from the footrest to his lap, she smiled, "So my brilliant Rumple, what deviousness have you devised for her?"

He pressed a kiss to her cheek before stating with rather manic glee that had once been his trademark, "I play her and her hatreds for everything they're worth until Emma and the Huntsman have figured out how to break the curse or she figures it out and I can go back to despising her without mask. Snow might have to be incarcerated for a little bit, but it'll help our ends if Regina is lulled into thinking she's winning and I'm her friend. What do you think?"

Her face was amusingly pensive before she nodded, "It's simple, therefore hard to confuse. It's straightforward, therefore hard to mess up. And it's devious; therefore you'll execute it perfectly. Are you going to tell Emma about it?"

"No, she's got enough on her plate without worrying about more intrigue. It's not really her thing. Also, the Huntsman and I have…an understanding. If she gets anxious, he'll set her straight. He knows they can trust me."

"So the Curse… You made it; how's it broken?"

He chuckled, "Maleficent bought it from me before I'd quite gotten that far, love."

Sighing with mock exasperation, she shook her head, "You and your questionable business practices. It's no wonder you own a pawn shop here. You're shady characters the lot of you."

Glaring playfully, he asked, "Aye, really?"

"Aye. People warned me about hooligans like you. I'm rather glad I didn't listen. Anyhow, about the Curse. Emma is a tad busy at the moment. Henry has to tiptoe around his lovely adopted mother. And the Huntsman has to generally stick to the woods so Her Highness doesn't smite him with a fireball on the spot. Looks like I have a research project ahead of me."

"Do ye now?"

Kissing him lightly before bounding toward the library, she exclaimed, "Of course; someone in this impending marriage has to ensure your shady past transactions don't taint our reputation! Oh that means you're making supper, love."

Groaning, he glared at her, "Why exactly?"

Blue eyes shining with mischief, she stated, "One, because you love me. Two, because you're going to get hungry. Three, because I'm doing research. Four, because you love me."

"Dammit, I do hate it when you win arguments."

"So that explains you're cranky demeanor," she smirked, teasing dripping from her gushing tone. "I'd wondered why you were always rather cantankerous; it's because I always win."

Rolling his eyes as he made his way across the room to her, he demanded, "Hush," right before doing it for her by kissing her soundly.


	13. Return

So, hello everyone. Not much this week. I'm kind of interested to see how the writers play things out from this week's episode. So, I've got more just moments I wanted to see with the people they haven't brought back yet.

Thanks for reading & hope you enjoy! :)

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><p>"Rumple," Belle called with a touch of amusement but mainly confusion in her tone. "Why is the poor, missing woman in our basement?"<p>

"Oh yes, I probably should've told you about that," he commented as he came up next to her in the kitchen. "The former Mrs. Nolan is in our basement, dearie, because the Huntsman brought her here from Regina's lake house where I've been keeping her since she disappeared. She's going amazingly come back from the dead today."

At her raised eyebrow, he continued, "Don't look at me like that. I'm always very nice to the women I imprison in my basement."

"Oh, this I know better than anyone. She's not going to take this as part of the deal, you know." His sly grin told her he knew exactly what was coming before he kissed her cheek and grabbing his car keys.

Smiling as she shook her head, she merely said as he left for the shop, "Have a good day working against greater evil, my dear…"

* * *

><p>"So, what do you think about August? Should we let him in on Operation Cobra?" Henry looked up at Graham expectantly as the man stroked Snowball's head.<p>

Shrugging, Graham sighed, "I don't know, Henry. I was never good with people. Do you trust him?"

Considering that for a bit, Henry gave a nod, "Yeah. I don't think he's against us at all. I think he's kind of like Mr. Gold. He's not necessarily with us, but he's definitely against the Queen. Who do you think he is?"

"I've got no idea on this one, buddy, especially because he came from out of town. Your guess is as good as mine. What does Emma think of him?"

Henry smiled, "I think he annoys her because he flirts with her. It's actually kinda funny." Graham smirked back at him, knowing it was rather amusing when Emma was irritated with someone that wasn't you.

"You breaking out of the house to go to Mary Margaret's party tonight?"

Nodding fiercely, Henry said, "Of course! I think I'm going to get her a present actually. She deserves a pick-me-up. Charming is still being stupid, I think. We made a card for her at school. Do you want to see?"

Before Graham could give a sign to either the negative or affirmative, the boy was rummaging in his bag. Smiling at the kid's enthusiasm, he looked at the huge red glitter-fest of a card. Laughing when he read the message, he handed it back to Henry, "You guys certainly cut to the chase on that one. It's great. I'm sure she'll love it."

Beaming, Henry looked up at him, "Are you coming?"

"No, I don't think so. Too many people to reveal my existence to the world and whatnot. I think I'll find Maleficent. See if she's got any ideas. Snowball is going to love it, though."

The wolf yipped in agreement. Maybe Ruby would be there. He liked Ruby. She smelled nice.

Smiling at the canine that had really become his best friend, Henry nodded, "I know. He loves people when they aren't evil. You should come over before, though. We can all sit around and watch movies and stuff and you can steal mom's hot chocolate so she gets mad at you."

Grinning, Graham ruffled the boy's hair, "You are too much like your mom. You're too ornery."

"I'm glad you're in love with my mom. You two are good together. It's kind of nice having a bit of a dad." Smirking at the speechless expression he knew he was leaving, Henry got up and jogged back to the school with the end of the lunch hour. Snowball sat on the ground, barking with laughter at his friend's expression.

* * *

><p>Emma strode down the hallway before Regina with more purpose than she'd felt in a long time. Her mind had made itself and her legs were only too happy to keep the attitude going. Sidney was stupid and lovelorn and she had no doubt he'd betray her in a second, but that did not mean she was going to allow that bitch to make him take the fall for kidnapping. It was not happening.<p>

She was so sick of Regina weaseling her way out of everything!

"I'm getting my son back!" she declared toward the end of her speech, shushing the mayor multiple times. At the snide disbelief in the evil woman's eyes, Emma took a step closer, "Don't give that look to me. You think that just because you've got some keys to the town and Mr. Lovesick in there, your arrogance is going to let you win? Henry is my son and I am taking him back. No matter what you throw at me, I guarantee that I have bigger, better, more loyal friends than you do."

At the beginning of hesitance in the mayor's eyes, she grinned, "You've pissed off a lot of people, mayor. There are plenty of people who will only too willingly help bring about the fall of the queen…"

Not looking back, she marched back into her office. She needed to call Mr. Gold. He was good with legal stuff (understanding and breaking it was style). She needed his help. Plus, she hadn't spoken to Belle in a while. She liked the brunette's company. Then she got to go home to Graham.

Come what may, she was going to have a good rest of the afternoon.


	14. Stranger

I'M FINALLY BACK!

I'm so sorry for taking so long to get back to this story. However, I now have the last three episodes that I missed and I should be done with the season within the next two weeks. So, if you all can please forgive me for being gone so long, I hope you enjoy and I'd love to hear you think. Thanks for reading! :)

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><p>"<em>Code red. Mom, we have an emergency. Meet me at Granny's."<em>

Frowning a bit before replying she'd be there into her walkie, Emma smiled at Mary Margaret. "I guess I'll see you later. Have a good day back at school. Thanks for the new lock, August."

"I'll come with you," the black-clad man replied, following her out the door before Emma could say another word.

Mary Margaret couldn't help but smile a bit at the look of frustration on Emma's face. Chuckling, she shook her head. The man apparently wasn't very good at reading women. When the door was firmly shut and she heard their footsteps descend the stairs, she called, "You can come out now, Graham."

The Huntsman emerged from Emma's room, running a hand through his ever messy hair. "Henry wasn't kidding, was he? Emma's going to kill him if he keeps that up."

Exchanging a smile with him, Mary Margaret laughed, "Let's hope it doesn't come to that. In his defense, how is he supposed to know that Emma's dating you? You're supposed to be dead or gone or something."

"Hey, I never said I would be the one to kill him," Graham replied, smirk on his face. Pulling on his leather jacket and attaching his knives to his belt, he nodded a good-bye, "I'll be back probably tomorrow. I've got some things to take care of for Henry. Have a good first day back."

"Thanks. You three really need to be careful with this whole curse business you keep rambling on about. I just hope none of you run afoul of Regina again."

Graham merely nodded again before disappearing out the back way. Mary Margaret didn't believe yet. That was unsurprising, he guessed. If he was supposed to be Snow White and was having that much trouble with her prince charming, he'd doubt it, too. They'd taken her to stay with the dwarves, but all in all, there wasn't anything overtly magical about the place. Mary Margaret had called it quaint instead. The seven of them were closer to normal height in this world, too.

It was something they'd have to confront eventually, he had no doubt.

At that moment, however, he needed to be out in the forest.

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><p>"But why would they put in a story without the ending?" Emma queried, frowning down at the new addition to Henry's book, trying to focus after August's lovely chat with her about custody battles and the "big picture". That man was starting to bug her.<p>

Shrugging, the boy replied, "I don't know. That's what's weird. The story is about Pinocchio, but everyone knows how that one ends."

"Maybe that's why they left it out…?" That explanation sounded weak to Emma even, but she'd tried.

Henry smirked as he shook his head, "No, I think that maybe there's more to it." Their attention was pulled from the words as August walked through the door, jingling the small bell attached. Pensive expression descending, Henry continued, "Maybe we need to find out more about him."

"August? Why who do you think he is?" Rolling her eyes at the overly flirtatious man, she remarked, "_I_ think he's one of those annoying suitor guys that Jasmine rejects in Aladdin."

Laughing at that, her son shook his head, "I'm not sure about that. I don't really know at this point, but maybe he's got something to do with the Pinocchio story in my book. Operation Cobra should find out…"

Catching his gaze, Emma's eyes widened, "Oh no. No, no, no, I am not going to be the one to do it. I don't want this mission. Haven't you been buddy buddy with him?"

"Sort of, but I've just been trying to find out how much he knows. I haven't told him everything. He doesn't know about Graham or Snowball or anything. He also doesn't know that you believe me. I lied and said you thought it was some kid imagination phase I had going."

"Like I'd do that to you," she protested. Sighing, she finally nodded with a groan, "Fine, I'll take this one. He just offered to take me on a trip to see the big picture, but you and Graham owe me. Now come on, you're going to be late for school and I know that Snowball's going to want those leftover pieces of bacon."

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><p>"I think you know why we're here."<p>

Taking deep breaths, trying to calm herself, Emma glanced from the diner sign to August. She'd been to this place once since she'd grown up. She hadn't even gotten out of her yellow bug. There was just too much pain there. Though she knew now that her parents hadn't wanted to abandon her, they still had and part of her still ached because of it. She'd forgiven them, she'd understood, even if they didn't know they were her parents, but this place made the pain flare up.

She knew the ones she loved now would never abandon her—Graham and Henry and Mary Margaret—a part of her heart recoiled at this reminder.

"This is the diner you were taken to when you were found as a baby."

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><p>"A tree?" Emma asked, doing her best to appear disbelieving and confused. She wasn't going to let August know that she knew and believed until she knew who the hell he was.<p>

"Yeah. You've read Henry's book. You know about the curse and your role in it."

Trying to look pained, she rolled her eyes as he pushed on.

"It's true, Emma. We both came into this world through this tree."

So that's how it happened, she thought to herself, internally bursting with excitement at the new revelations she had for Henry, Graham, and Operation Cobra. He had somehow come with her. They had both been sent to escape the curse, to be safe. A little part of her frowned. But why send a seven-year-old kid to look after a baby?

"You're asking me to believe that you're a fairy tale character?"

Smirking ever so slightly, he nodded as he leaned down and pulled up a pant leg to reveal a wooden limb, "Pinocchio."

Suddenly smiling, she exclaimed, "You're the one who added the story to Henry's book. Why didn't you finish it?"

Her happiness took August aback. Stuttering, he demanded, "W-W-Wait, you _believe_ me? But you don't believe Henry. He told me."

Emma shrugged, "He lied. We didn't know who you were. We couldn't trust you until we knew."

"So all this time, you've know? You've believed in the curse all this time?" August's face was incredulous.

"Yeah, since before you got here. Regina killed Graham and I kind of…well," she still hated talking about that horrible twenty-four hours in which Graham had been dead, "I believed. I've been a member of Operation Cobra ever since."

Confusion and, ironically, disbelief were still fighting for control of August's face. Heavily, he collapsed to the ground beside the tree a moment later, massaging his legs. Finally, he answered, "I didn't finish it because I thought I was going to have to convince you. I made a promise to my father when he sent me through that I would be there for you and guide you so you believed when the time came. I kind of…failed on my part."

"Wait!" she demanded. "They expected you—a seven-year-old former piece of tree—to come to a world with no magic to take care of a baby for twenty-eight years?"

August nodded numbly.

"What the hell were they thinking? No kid should have to do that." Emma suddenly felt sort of better about being abandoned. Sitting down beside him, she commented, "Hell, I was eighteen and I couldn't even take care of a baby."

"I'm sorry, though. I was supposed to take care of you and I didn't."

Smiling slightly, Emma shook her head, "Don't worry about it. I forgive you. I've got plenty of people there for me now."

They sat in silence for a while, both taking in what they had learned. Emma had so much new information for Henry. August was trying to wrap his head around the fact that he hadn't needed to try and scam Gold and that his legs were already turning back into actual legs instead of the wood he'd been acquiring. He could go see his father and his father could proud of him for at least trying. Though it wasn't his doing, their savior was more than committed to the task.

After a time, Emma stood and held out a hand for him. "Come on, it's late."

Taking her offered hand, he nodded. Once upright, he didn't let go of her hand right away. Looking at it awkwardly, Emma cleared her throat, "So, now that you don't have to kiss up to me to get me to believe, can we stop with this whole flirting thing?" At his silence and fingers still around hers, she raised an eyebrow, "I'm dating the Huntsman. The sneak through the forest, raised by wolves, one-time Queen's assassin, _Huntsman_. I'm in love with him and whatnot."

August let go of her hand so fast, it was as if his hand was still wood and hers was on fire.

Letting out an embarrassed laugh, he suggested "Let's call ourselves old friends."

"I can work with that."


	15. Apple of Truth

Why hello there.

So, as you've probably guessed these last two episodes aren't going to go exactly as canon. I've got a start on the finale and should have it up within the next week and a half or so. Thanks for reading everybody! :D

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><p>Henry was in a great mood when he stepped into Granny's Diner after school, Snowball at his heels.<p>

He really had been having a wonderful day. Emma was having trouble getting started in getting custody of him, but it made him so happy that she was trying. Then, after August had revealed to Emma that he was actually Pinocchio, the newest member of Operation Cobra had met with the group. He knew and remembered so much about the original curse and the days leading up to it. He knew so much about the curse in general. Information was what they needed more than ever. Maleficent had only revealed so much, despite Henry going back to visit her a few times. He knew she was a villain, but he really kind of liked her…in an odd sort of way.

With August no longer flirting with Emma, there was far less tension in the room, especially after he and the Huntsman had met. Henry enjoyed watching the adults and the convoluted ways of adult society. He was going to enjoy it while he could without having to worry about it himself.

In the last twenty-four hours, Operation Cobra had made amazing strides. They had an idea of how to break the curse.

Emma had been slowly breaking people's curses individually since she came, starting with Graham. True love's kiss had broken the curse for him. Seeing Emma had broken the dwarves' and Red was halfway there. Henry hoped she stayed there for a bit longer. The next week held the full moon and perhaps it would be better if she came to herself afterward…

The question then remained how to break the _whole _curse. How did they wake everyone up _and_ send them back home? The four of them had decided that answer lied in the root of the curse. It was meant to end Snow White and Charming's happiness. Perhaps the way to end it was to return their happiness.

There was always the plan B of physically fighting Mayor Evil.

Needless to say, Henry was in a glorious mood. They had direction. They were doing well. Plus, he was just happy. For the first time in his life, he really felt like he had a family. Emma was more his mother than Mayor Evil had ever been and Graham easily fell into the role of father figure, something he'd never had before. The couple was out in the forest that day, searching for some old friends of Graham's. Emma was working on getting custody of him. It wasn't looking so good, but her trying was enough for Henry.

He felt his happiness deserved a nice chocolate milkshake.

The door jingled as he walked in and the patrons within, including David, Belle, and Ashley with her baby, all looked up and greeted him with smiles. Snowball promptly trotted forward and put his paws up on the counter.

"Hi sweetie! How are you?" Ruby questioned of the canine, affectionately rubbing his ears. After her escapade with Henry, Graham, and Snowball to find Belle, she'd let the wolf accompany his friend into the diner. He usually took up residence behind the counter, curled up at her feet.

He yapped in answer to her question before trotting to his usual place, licking her hand as he went. Smiling, Ruby asked as Henry climbed onto a barstool beside Belle, "What can I get for you today, Henry? Looking for an afterschool snack?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "It's been a good day. Can I have a chocolate shake, please?"

"Coming right up."

Pulling off his coat as Ruby walked away, Henry turned to his neighbor, "Hi, Belle. How are you?"

The brunette smiled at him in her kind, intelligent way, "I'm good, Henry. I've been doing some research, actually. Want to hear about it?"

The conspiratorial twinkle her face had taken on made him smile. She remembered and she'd been doing research. "Sure."

"Well, from what I can find out the best way to bring about the end is to go back to the beginning. True love is where it all started. As I understand it, Emma's presence makes it all possible. Without her here, it couldn't happen."

"That's exactly what we thought!" he exclaimed, beginning to pull out his storybook. It was crazy. He'd gone from being the only one to know to having allies popping out of the woodwork.

At that moment, Mary Margaret walked in, an odd look on her face. She absently greeted the others there before sitting beside Henry, staring at the container in her hands. He frowned at it, "Miss Blanchard, are you okay?"

"Yes," she nodded with a quiet voice, still highly preoccupied. "It's just strange is all. Regina came into apologize today. Something about her being too hard on me and she understood David's charms. It was so…odd. I don't understand what she means by that, 'David's charms'."

Snorting savagely, Belle commented, "Yes, odd because it's insincere. She never apologizes to anyone for anything."

Henry nodded in agreement, "She must have a plan behind it. It has to be something sinister."

His words seemed to suddenly wake the teacher. Voice firm but quiet, she admonished, "Now Henry, you shouldn't jump to such conclusions. Perhaps she's finally seeing the error in her ways. I just…What _did_ she mean about David? She couldn't be seeing him, could she?"

"I put nothing past her," Belle replied, taking a deep drink of the apple cider before her. Perhaps she'd just been with her Rumple too long, but how in the world did anyone even approach sincerely forgiving someone like Regina?

"Well, I'm going to give her the benefit of the doubt," Mary Margaret declared, gathering herself up from the horrible mess of confused little pieces the mayor's visit had left her in. "I forgive her. I already said I had. She…She can have David if she wishes. The two of us will never work and he ought to be happy with someone. The mayor even gave me this delightful apple turnover to share with Emma. Apparently, she wants to try and ease up on the fighting there."

"NO!" Henry cried, grabbing for the opened Tupperware and snatching it from her hands. "You can't eat it. Not again!"

Frowning, struck dumb like every other person in the room, his teacher struggled to come up with words. "What-What are you talking about, Henry?"

"I can't let you do this again. I won't let her do it to you again. She won't hurt, Emma." He held the container defensively in his hands, pleading but determined look on his face. "She won't hurt you again."

"How is she going to hurt us with a turnover, Henry? You're just being silly. What do you think she's poisoned it or something?"

"Of course. It's what she does." As Mary Margaret continued to just stare at him, caught between disbelief and concern for his sanity, the ten-year-old narrator made up his mind. Snow White needed to believe and he needed to keep them safe. Taking a deep breath, he began as calmly as he could, "Miss Blanchard, we're not crazy. We're not making this up. Storybrooke is under a curse from the Evil Queen. Emma is here to save everyone and if she is you have to believe. You and David are Snow White and Prince Charming. You're her parents. Find each other. If I don't fall over, then you don't have to believe me."

Before the teacher could say another word, Henry had grabbed the turnover and taken a big bite. For a second, he was normal. Then, without warning, his eyes closed and he fell heavily from his stool.

Making a grab for him, Belle managed to break his fall, though not without winding up on the floor herself. "Henry?!" She patted his cheek a few times, but nothing happened. "Henry?!"

Snowball had bounded out from behind the counter, Ruby right on his heels within seconds.

Mary Margaret couldn't move. Frozen to her chair, she only stared at her comatose student with an open mouth. She couldn't believe that had just happened. Without conscious thought guiding them, her eyes moved over and found a pair of blue ones staring back at her, just as dumbstruck.

As the paramedics were called and Henry still remained motionless, she and David held each other's gazes across the room. If she were really Snow White, why in the world would it be so darn hard to be with him? Why would all of this have happened? _How _would all of Henry's words be possible?

Then, suddenly, she understood. As crazy as it sounded, as impossible, juvenile, and ridiculous as it was, Regina made an excellent Evil Queen who hated her for no discernible reason. Maybe, just maybe Henry was right.

She could be Snow White…couldn't she?

* * *

><p>"NO! No, I will not calm down!" Emma shouted, anticipating Graham's words, picking her stride up to a sprint as she entered the forest, night already falling. "I will not calm down. I will not stay home! I'm going to see her."<p>

Without a word, Graham grabbed her arm and pulled her to him. She hadn't stopped moving since Ruby had called her, telling her to be at the hospital immediately. Henry was…dying. The doctors couldn't explain it. Whale didn't have the faintest idea what had sent him into the coma. Whale didn't, but they did. Emma did.

For a second, she fought him, pushing away from the emotions she was kicking down and trying to stomp on so they didn't show through. The only thing she wanted to feel was angry. She didn't want to feel helpless and devastated and crushed and scared to death and…more than a little lost without her child.

Graham's arms around her shot that effort to hell. Only moments of his embrace and she was sobbing uncontrollably into his neck.

Still holding her, he tried to figure out what to say. He loved the kid, too. He was still in that pondering stage when they were suddenly doused in light. Instincts made his head jerk up, but Emma didn't move.

"Hello, Emma. I've been wondering when we'd meet."

Growling low in his throat, Graham snapped, "Not a good time, Maleficent."

Smiling wider, the sorceress crooned from her doorway, "What kind of villainess would I be if I actually cared, Huntsman? Where's our little narrator? I've grown fond of his company."

"He's dying because of your stupid, evil, villainous…_bitch_ of a best friend!"

For the first time in as long as she could remember, Maleficent was afraid. And not just for herself, but for…someone else. Her face paled at Emma's words, "He's…what?"

"He had a turnover that the Evil Queen made for Snow and Emma. He got a hold of it and ate it before Snow could," Graham explained.

Pulling herself from his embrace, Emma strode to the woman. Arms crossed and a wild look in her eyes, she demanded, "What do we do now? How do we end it?"

Gathering her wits and dark cloak about her again, Maleficent drew herself up to her full height. The two blondes took measure of each other for a long moment. Reaching behind the door and drawing out a long staff, the sorceress provided quietly, "Aside from breaking the curse, I don't know. In the meantime," her grin turned evil, "I'll help you fight the bitch."

Glancing behind her, getting Graham's affirmative nod, Emma smiled back, "Deal. Do either of you know where I can get a sword?"

"Oh darling," Maleficent cooed, taking a decisive step out of her cottage, "who needs a sword when you've got a dragon?"


	16. Love is Magic

"I am not crazy," Ruby thought. "I am not crazy."

As she cowered in the closed diner, pressed up in a corner and fighting the urge to skitter back into the moonlight, she couldn't quite get around to believing herself. The red ribbon had returned, leading in a thousand different directions as her baffled mind was unsure of what to smell, what to hear, what to taste.

Too much! It was just too much to take in. Too many sounds. Too many smells. Too many urges to just get up, bask in the moonlight, and howl her heart out.

Howl? Where was howling coming from?

Groaning, she tried harder, trying to focus in on something, _anything_.

It was all the mayor's fault. She'd tried to kill Mary Margaret and Emma and Henry had paid for it. Though she'd never really disbelieved him, per se, she'd never been confronted with it being the truth before. Ever since the paramedics had rushed Henry away, the entire diner following to the hospital, she'd gone crazy. Ever since she'd seen Henry lying there, she just hadn't been right.

She'd seen a person like that before, she'd swear to it. Just lying there. At first glance they appeared to just be sleeping, but on second you could tell the difference. As she thought back to the memory, she couldn't shake the feeling that how she knew was that they smelled different.

_What_ was wrong with her?!

Holding her head up not doing anything for her, she began anxiously running her hands through her hair. She let her fingers slide through the dark strands, attempting to soothe herself. Then she caught sight of the red within them. Bright red. Crimson red. Blood red. Red had always been her favorite color ever since…ever since forever.

Now that she thought about it, she couldn't actually remember having a childhood. Perhaps she'd acquired the love then. The singular thought helped her focus, making the moonlight far less alluring.

Red. Red like apples. Red like roses. Red like a large engulfing cape. Red like the inside of a comforting hood. Red like blood. Red like Snowball's right eye… Red like Red Riding Hood.

Red like her real name.

"Oh no," Red whispered, pushing herself up off the floor, staggering against tables. Her mind whirled as it was inundated with memories and knowledge. "Oh Henry…"

Regaining control of her body, Red took a deep breath. She knew _exactly_ who she was, no matter how her identity had plagued her for the last twenty-eight years. She was Red and she had a terrible gift.

The red ribbon in her vision had finally picked a destination. It ran straight toward the moonlight streaming through the window, its crimson color pulsing as she stood there. She knew exactly where she wanted to go, what she wanted to do. Snowball was no longer going to be the only wolf in Storybrooke.

Stepping forward, Red couldn't keep the smile from her face. Her curse was a terrible thing and she'd done terrible things under it, however it was a part of her. She'd missed it in its own way. She was herself again.

Two long strides brought her fully into the moonlight and a long, deep howl resounded through the town.

* * *

><p>"What's going to happen, Rumple?"<p>

Belle glanced up at her love from where they stood on the front porch of their home. There was hope in her voice as she noticed the dancing, manic light in his eyes. She knew that look.

They both jumped as a great howl echoed through the air and was answered almost immediately after by dozens more. His smile widened.

"Something greatly resembling justice, dearie." Taking her hand after pulling her in for a kiss, he started down the stairs. "Come on, Emma's going to need her father's sword."

Belle returned his smile as she tightened her hold on the weapon she hid in the folds of her dress.

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><p>Mary Margaret was staring at her cup of hot chocolate. It had long stopped steaming and was now more of a lukewarm chocolate. Not that she really noticed, however. As soon Emma had sprinted from the hospital, a wild and dangerous look in her eyes, the mayor had kicked out everyone from her son's room. Everyone had been in too deep a shock to argue.<p>

She had somehow stumbled her way home, not really remembering how she got there. Her mind was filled with Henry's words. He'd always been an imaginative kid. It was part of the reason why she'd given him the book of fairy tales. Half of it was that and half of it this urge to just let him know that out there, somewhere, happy endings existed. She was beginning to wonder about that.

"_Find each other."_

That's what Henry had said and something about his simple phrase was eating away at her brain. It was like when you were thinking of a word and it stayed just out of reach on the tip of your tongue. It was agonizing.

"Find each other," she mumbled to herself, letting whatever thoughts occurred to her just slip from her lips. "Find each other. Find him…I will always…find you."

At the exact moment the words were out of her mouth, a sharp knocking came from her front door. Jumping violently, nearly spilling her cold drink, she rose and hurried to answer, mind still reeling with some spark those words had set off.

"David?"

David stood there, leaning against her door casing, her normally handsome face creased with confusion. "Mary Margaret, I-I know it's crazy but do you believe him?" She didn't need to ask which him. Before she could respond at all, he continued, "It's insane and it makes no sense, but… I mean, Snow White and Charming never had this much trouble. If we really were them—which I know we can't be—then none of this would be so damned hard. But I just can't get it out of my head that I just need to…find you."

He took in a deep breath and truly found her gaze for the first time since he'd knocked on her door and begun babbling. There was more pleading than his pride would've liked when he breathed, "All I've ever needed is to just find you."

He immediately looked down, embarrassed as silence descended. He had no idea what was wrong with him. Nothing he did made any sense when it came to her. All he knew was that he needed her. It was even more than normal after what had happened to Henry. Some part of him had just decided to ignore the rational fact that magic and fairy tale characters didn't exist and believe the kid.

"…James!"

He looked up slowly, brain abruptly no longer spinning. For the first time since he'd woken up to her face, nothing was clouded and nothing was complicated. He knew.

"Snow!"

She barely had the time to smile before he'd pulled her to him, clutching her in a hug and passionate kiss. As their lips found one another's and their heart's finally recognized the true love before them, a flash of color blazed out in a ripple from them, unbeknownst to both.

Not nearly a lifetime enough later, the silence was suddenly broken by a deep howl that seemed to penetrate the very walls. Soon after it was replied to by dozens more. The eerie call startled them apart.

"Red," Snow breathed out, subconscious better at playing catch up than the rest of her. It knew what was going on. "Oh no, Red's changed." That wasn't going to be good in a so not-secluded place after so long.

Embrace tightening, if that was possible, James frowned, "What's the rest of that then? She's one wolf, not a whole pack."

"But Regina," she cut herself off, shaking her head a tad bit, "the Queen doesn't use animals. She never has. They always know."

"Then what…"

James was cut off by a sound infinitely more terrifying that Red and a million wolves. The building and very ground beneath it shook as a screeching roar filled what felt like the entire world. Unable to hold in a shocked gasp that she couldn't even hear, Snow pressed herself closer to Charming, gazing out the window in disbelief as an enormous purple dragon swooped down over her home and toward the hospital.

As it disappeared further into the night, the one thing she caught sight of was a blowing mass of blonde hair. Blonde hair almost exactly identical to her father's.

"Emma…" Grabbing his hand, Snow sprinted from her apartment ignoring the slipper boots on her feet.

* * *

><p>Regina sat at Henry's bedside, wondering how long it would take for someone to come for her after she felt the ripple of love consume the town, wondering why she had something resembling love for Henry when it was his fault her world was collapsing. When had she become that desperate for love? As the nurses, Dr. Whale, and the Mother Superior skittered about in a panic as first the howling and then the roaring began, she continued to sit, ignoring how the beeping of Henry's monitors began to show he was waking.<p>

Stupid true love's kiss and all that ridiculousness.

Why did no one ever love her? '_Daniel loved you_,' a tiny voice within her head whispered. '_Your father loved you._ _The genie loved you_.'

"And they've all been taken from me in one way or another," she whispered bitterly to herself.

"Pondering your sins, Your Majesty?"

Freezing in her seat, she fought the urge to turn. "One with powers like mine doesn't care about sins, Jefferson. What do you want?"

Ignoring her question, the hatter grinned at her discomfort, "The pathetically doting way you're sitting at this bedside indicates otherwise, I'd say. Do you understand now? How it feels to be taken from your child…though not biologically in your case."

She remained silent.

Spinning his top hat lovingly in his fingers, he left with a parting comment, "I believe I forgot to mention this, but a word to the wise, Emma's been playing house with your Huntsman ever since she woke him up and started believing. That little angel you're watching over there has been having nice cozy chats with Maleficent for months." He grinned as she finally spun about in horror at that, "I'll see you on the other side, Regina."

As Jefferson disappeared, she looked down at Henry.

She'd raised him. She'd loved him. She'd been everything for him…and he'd betrayed her. If no one could love her then why should she bother to love anyone back? She'd retake the Huntsman's heart and just keep him about for her enjoyment like last time. No one was ruining her Curse. Their misery was her triumph. No longer feeling any sorrow about how awry her actions had gone, she stood and strode toward the window.

Out on the street, Maleficent the overgrown lizard landed, Emma astride her shoulders.

She watched as people began to appear everywhere, most still highly confused, disbelieving of the giant mythical creature before them. Grasping every bit of magic she could, an unpleasant sign the Curse was weakening, Regina violently raised a hand toward Henry's large window. It shattered before her. Though she felt odd without a cape or skirt billowing about her, her entrance was just as malicious as it had always been, pantsuit included.

Sending a last half-scathing, half-sorrowful look at a blinking Henry whose bed had been covered in glass shards, she stepped from the hospital.

Maleficent roared lividly, her flaming breath added to by the burning rage that had been seething for twenty-eight years. Though the sorceress couldn't speak, her eyes conveyed her sentiments easily enough. Regina ignored her old friend. There was a reason she had been defeated. Regina was better.

As the two witches stared one another down, those about them began to awaken. It didn't matter. With every person whose Curse was broken, the more magic she regained.

Aside Maleficent's steamy breathing, there was no noise. Regina stayed still and quiet, holding her arms down at her sides, palms out. She didn't care what Emma had up her sleeve; she was ready. She watched as Belle, with a look her way cold enough to chill hell, handed Emma her father's sword.

There's more reason to be scared of the damned maid than Emma, she told herself. The stupid blonde didn't even know how to hold the weapon. Emma appeared to come to that conclusion herself as she awkwardly got a better grip of it, letting it fall to her side.

Regina began to laugh as Emma strode toward her. "This-_This_ is what you pathetic mice send to defeat me? You idiots can't even figure out who you are, let alone defeat me."

Emma didn't seem to mind the thinly veiled insult. "I told you once and I'm never going to repeat myself again. I have bigger, better, more loyal friends than you do." Maleficent's purple tongue flicked out in agreement. "Besides, even if I go down, I'm sure Belle will gladly take care of you."

"I see one friend. And while she's put on a considerable amount of weight, I don't see her staying your friend for very much longer."

As she began to continued, the street took in a collective gasp as no fewer than three dozen wolves appeared from the darkness, one three times larger than any of the others. It had red stripes running down its back. As Red bared her giant fangs, the pack surrounding her collectively raised a blood-chilling howl. Clad in black and with a large knife on his hip, the Huntsman appeared at Emma's side, apparently very much back from the death she'd tried to put him in.

Voice deadly, he commented, "At least Emma has people who love her." Briefly, he reached out and squeezed his love's hand, "We're here for back up if you need us, love."

"You don't have a heart to love her," Regina spat, hating the loving look the two exchanged. Collecting herself with apparent ease despite the chills those horrid canines had caused, sending a hungry look toward her former slave, she purred to Emma, "Now, about the toy you stole from me… I'd like to take him back."

As she had expected, Emma tensed up and had she been able to breathe fire, nothing could have saved Regina. That was the problem with people who loved. They were _weak_ and so pathetically easy to manipulate. With a clumsy kind of skill, Emma tightened her grip on her sword and raised it.

"Come and get him, bitch!"

Regina merely raised her hands out before her, more than prepared to roast Emma to a crisp when she got within range. The sword Emma still hadn't drawn certainly wasn't going to hurt her. A small, triumphant smirk appeared on the Queen's face. She was just gathering the magic, ready to release it, when Emma surprised her.

Dropping the sword to the ground before she'd even taken a step, Emma drew her service pistol and pulled the trigger. Screw magic, her methods worked perfectly well in situations like these—crazy bitches trying to fuck with her man. It wasn't going to happen. "Your toy my ass."

Releasing a piercing scream of surprise and pain, Regina fell to the ground, clutching her left collarbone where a bullet had just ripped through it. Red was upon her, teeth still bared, within seconds. Between the pain of modern non-magical weaponry and a giant paw holding her to the ground, the Queen was immobile when Emma appeared above her, sword once again in her hand.

"_Never_ threaten my family," she whispered.

For a long moment nothing moved. Emma wasn't sure what she was supposed to do next. Glancing up, she caught sight of Henry in his broken window, supported on either side by his grandparents. He smiled at her widely, mouthing 'Good job.' He was all right. He was no longer dying. By all intents and purposes, she'd broken the Curse.

What now?

Looking down at the Evil Queen again, she understood why Henry had once said that being good was harder. She couldn't kill her. She couldn't just stand there and swipe down with her sword…she just couldn't. Fighting back tears, she glanced back at Graham. In a look he understood. Smiling that adorable, ornery smile that made her love him so much, he gave her an encouraging nod. It was all right.

"The Curse is broken…you lost."

Smiling manically through the blood spattering on her lips, the witch cackled at Emma's hesitance, "Really? If you won, then why are you still here? You'll never get home. Kill me if you want. I've still won."

"I'm not going to kill you. Come on, Red." Patting the giant wolf's shoulder, Emma turned.

"You're never getting home! None of you! You're going to stay here, _miserable_, forever!"

Hearing quite enough, Maleficent let out a low roar before merely extending her neck. A jet of purple flame burst from her mouth over her enormous teeth. The dragon blinked only once before turning away from the small, insignificant pile of dust her once-best friend had been reduced to.

To the horrified looks of everyone there, she shrunk down to her normal form, brushing off her shoulders and shaking out her hair. Meeting Emma's shocked eyes, the sorceress shrugged, "There's only room for one villainess in the Enchanted Land and it wasn't about to be that bitch. Nice shot, by the way. You should get your lover boy there to teach you archery." Smile widening, she turned toward the hospital window, "Hello, my little narrator."

There was no 'I'm glad you're all right' or 'How are you feeling' but Henry recognized the concern all the same. Grinning, he replied as he ran toward his mom, "Thanks, Maleficent." She inclined her head in a nod but then gladly faded into the background as the boy embraced his mother.

"You did it!" he exclaimed. "You completed Operation Cobra! You broke the Curse and saved everybody!"

Choking against a sob, Emma shook her head, "I'm just glad you're okay."

He was grinning when he pulled the Huntsman into their little group hug. "We're all okay. I had to get Snow and Charming to believe to really break it. I knew you guys would save me…you're my family."

"Always, kid."

Henry's grin only widened when the pulled away and Emma immediately wrapped her arms around the Huntsman's middle, pressing her face into his chest. "I can't believe I just used a sword." Laughing, Graham pressed a kiss to her forehead.

"So, what happens now?" Dr. Hopper, who had already turned back into a cricket, asked. "How do we get home?"

Taking his arm from around Belle to lean against his cane with both hands, Rumplestiltskin smirked in Maleficent's direction, "I might have an answer for that, dearie…"

"Oh no!" Maleficent responded vehemently. "No, you horrid swindler. I have a deal with the savior already and it's binding. I don't care what you had Prince Kissy-face shove into my chest; _none_ of you are going in to get it!"

"What's she talking about?" Snow queried, looking up at James.

The prince frowned, looking between the sorceress and the dark wizard, "He had me put a bottle of true love inside her chest when she was a dragon…I didn't realize what it was going to be for…What does it do, anyway?"

Breaking in there, Belle caught Maleficent and Henry both off guard before they could begin shouting, "We need true love to get back. It's the source of everything. We…We thought that when the Queen was defeated and everyone knew everyone would just go back. Apparently not, so we _need_ that potion."

Shouting began from all sides. Emma looked up at a pained Graham beside her. Smiling sadly, she leaned up on her toes and quickly but heavily kissed him. "STOP!" she shouted, bringing silence. "I have another idea. Stay here."

Without another word, she squeezed Graham's hand one last time, pressed a kiss to Henry's cheek and smiled at both her parents before sprinting away from the group and jumping into her yellow bug.

* * *

><p>Fighting back tears, Emma stared down into the well from where she sat on its stone edge. It felt like so long ago that August had brought her there.<p>

They'd been wrong. Everyone had been wrong. She was the savior, but not how everyone thought. She wasn't supposed to defeat the Evil Queen. She wasn't sure if she was even supposed to wake everyone up. Perhaps that would've all happened without her…

They'd all been so wrong. She knew that now.

Emma wasn't the savior because of great deeds or great knowledge or even great luck. She was the savior because _she_ was True Love. What was a stronger symbol of the True, pure, untainted love of her parents than her mere existence?

If somebody wanted stronger evidence than that, then all they had to do was look at Graham. There was no reason for how much he loved her other than it was just so True. And Henry…She never realized it before, but there was nothing like the love a mother had for her child.

She had so much love around and within her. That was her purpose.

Looking down into the dark depths of the well, she took a deep breath. She turned around just in time to see Snowball running into the clearing behind her. He yapped sharply at her, but she merely smiled. "If this doesn't work, take care of my guys for me."

With that, she pushed herself from the small stone ledge and felt the rush of falling as darkness consumed her and she filled her mind with one wish.

"_Please, just send us all home_."

* * *

><p>Emma couldn't remember when she'd started screaming, but her screeching voice was all she heard as she was rocketed up into the air out of the old stone well below her.<p>

For that matter, when had she begun going up?

All breath and thoughts were violently shoved from her chest as she connected with the ground again…hard. Groaning, she rolled herself over onto her back. "Ow…"

Blinking her eyes open, she found the sun shining brilliantly down upon her, its rays giving her hair an unusually ethereal glow. Ignoring the extra-shiny properties of her hair, she tried to get a good look at her surroundings.

Was that a…a unicorn? Was she sparkling with…pixie dust?

"Damn…" she breathed out in a whisper, trying to push herself up on her elbows. Before she could make it, she was tackled back onto the ground by a large mass of white fur, a tongue immediately beginning to lick her face. Emma laughed as she came face to face once again with one black and one red eye. She immediately thought back to the morning after Graham had died and her heart and life had changed so dramatically.

"Did we make it, Snowball?"

The wolf's snout took on something she could only describe as a smile as he nodded his head, tongue still lolling happily as his tail wagged. Grabbing her sleeve in his teeth, the wolf pulled her up to her feet.

Emma had only just gotten her balance when another body slammed into hers, two strong arms wrapping around her and squeezing possessively. Graham's lips were on hers immediately, kissing all his worry away and happiness bigger. Emma kissed back with abandon.

Wrapping her arms around his neck, she whispered giddily against his lips, "I'm ready to take you up on that offer of being carried off into a forest and never being left alone again…with Henry along, of course."

"Anything for you, My Princess.

* * *

><p>AN: It's done! It's done! It's done!

I'm so proud of myself right now, you all don't even know! I can't thank you all enough for all the wonderful support I've gotten for this story, even with the horrible hiatus toward the end there. You're all wonderful people and I'm so blessed to have readers like you.

So, as you have read the season has ended and I'm not really thinking of continuing on at this point, however…AN EPILOGUE DOST COMETH!


	17. Epilogue

"But mother, I don't _want_ to be queen!"

Emma groaned as she slumped against the table before her, rubbing her muddy feet together beneath her dress. Once, not so long ago, the situation she was in would've been beyond belief. She was sitting there, arguing with her mom about royal obligations. Snow White seemed to come to the same conclusion, because after a small sigh she merely smiled.

"You are the heir, though. You have to do some of the formalities."

"I have a wolf pack to take care of."

Graham had been true to his word, moving the small family of three out into the forest, into his element. Emma had come to love everything about it. She wasn't going to have electricity or water anywhere, so she might as well live somewhere beautiful with the two men she loved. Henry got his fill of people and civilization as often as he wanted. With Maleficent the reigning villain in the land—and having no mind to share her position—Henry was safe no matter where he went. Plus, Emma had other soon-to-be pressing reasons for not wanting to squeeze into beautiful dresses in front of people…

Standing and hugging her mom, Emma smiled, "Just have more kids. It's not like you're old yet. Or give it to Henry. He loves this stuff."

From the chair next to where Emma had been sitting, James grinned, "I told you, Snow. She's too much your daughter. It was never going to work." Snow sent him a look over her daughter's shoulder and he laughed.

Smiling and hugging both her parents, she turned to leave the large hall. "We'll come visit tomorrow again, I promise. I love you."

Nodding, accepting her daughter's decision, Snow smiled warmly, "We'll miss you until then. Tell your Huntsman he can come in if he wishes next time, as always."

To think, Emma thought to herself as she walked out into the darkness and found Graham waiting concealed in the shadows where she received her glorious kiss of greeting. To think that everything wonderful in her enchanted life had started with a kiss…


End file.
